Regrouping
by avidbeader
Summary: Now that Whispers has a way into their cluster through Will, the sensates must find a way to use the rules to their advantage. Immediate post-season 1 speculation.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

I apologize to the readers of my Harry Potter fic, "The Perils of Innocence" that this is not a new chapter to that story. Right now the brain ferrets have found something new and shiny to play with. I will continue to update both of these stories periodically, time and life and inspiration permitting.

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The faint whirr of the computer fans was soothing, as was the clicking of Neets' nails on her keyboard as she monitored the weather in the North Sea. Riley's friend with the fishing boat had stocked up – allowing three days to get to the German coast, three days to return, and three days in case of issues. They had made a brief stop in Ireland where Nomi had arranged for Sven to pick up more medical supplies to keep Will unconscious and comfortable.

Now Wolfgang was ready to meet them at a riverfront estate north of Hamburg. The owner was a friend of his aunt and only too happy to provide a few days' respite for a grieving nephew. On his last day, Wolfgang would say goodbye to his host, pull his rented car with the roomy back seat down to the dock for one more look at the water, out of view of the house, and be ready to take Riley and Will to the private hospital where Felix continued to mend.

Nomi paced between the monitors, each keeping tabs on a different issue. Thank God for Neets, who could be a second pair of eyes, handle the basics, and keep them fed while she remained barricaded in the apartment. Nomi reminded herself to lay the next false trail for the BOLO, Japan or perhaps Singapore. That would give her mother plenty of fodder for her overactive, sordid imagination.

She paused at the monitor hooked into the security cameras at Will's precinct station. So far there had been no alarm raised for him yet – he was on suspension, after all, but the cop who was his partner seemed to be getting worried. He would glance across to Will's usual desk repeatedly, falling behind on his paperwork.

As she watched, an older man limped into view. The officer jumped to his feet and held out a hand in invitation. Nomi took control of the camera and tapped into the audio stream to listen in.

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Michael Gorski sat down, stretching his bad leg. "Thanks, Diego. Walking in the summer seems to get harder every year. Maybe those climate-control fellas are onto something."

"Mr. Gorski, what brings you into the station?"

"I wanted to know when you last saw Will. I haven't heard from him in days, since Fourth of July, other than a text telling me he was taking some vacation time and going out of town. Usually he sends me a picture or two, but I haven't heard anything. And when I try to call, all I get is voicemail."

Diego frowned. "That's weird. Last time I saw Will was the day he got suspended—"

"Wait, wait. Suspended? Why the fuck did he get suspended?"

"Er…you'll have to ask the captain for the exact reason, but he was using his relationship to you to try and get more info about that terrorist he captured, Maliki."

"I don't believe it. Just wait until I get hold of that boot-licking—"

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Nomi felt her blood turn to ice as two other figures entered the camera view. She felt Riley's sudden, questioning fear in return. "It's Whispers, he's at Will's station."

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Gorski got to his feet. "All right, you little shit. What's the idea of suspending my son?"

Captain Sobczak looked at his companion and back. "Mr. Gorski, now isn't the time. This is Dr. Matheson, a noted neurosurgeon. He needs to talk to Officer Morales here as Will's partner. He may have information that explains his erratic behavior over the last several weeks and a procedure to help him."

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Nomi began shaking her head. "No, no, NO!"

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The floor swayed under her as she appeared on the boat. "Riley, quick! Give me Will's phone!"

Riley fished it out of Will's pocket and handed it over. Nomi used his thumb to wake it up and sighed in relief that there was a signal. Bringing up his contacts, she searched for Diego's number and pressed it.

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Riley looked over Nomi's shoulder at the monitor, worried. Amanita froze, watching her partner carefully and ready to act if needed.

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Diego pulled out his vibrating phone and read the name. "You gotta be kidding me…" He looked up at the man who had been on the scene of a suicide that Will shouldn't have known about. "Excuse me, but I need to take this."

Walking away from the men as Gorski began yelling at the other two, he answered. "Officer Strange, your timing is scary."

"It's not Will, it's Nomi Marks."

"Wha?"

"It's Nomi, I know you know who I am. You can't tell that man anything about Will. All he's after is turning him into another Niles Bolger. Will can't talk to you himself yet, but I swear we're doing everything we can to keep him safe. You can't trust ANYONE on the federal side, this BPO has too many allies in the government."

"Oh my god, I don't believe this. Where are you? Where's Will?"

"I can't tell you yet, it's too risky." Nomi frowned, hearing a crescendo of shouts in the background, and turned to the monitor.

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Diego whirled around as the shouts got louder, just in time to see Michael Gorski throw a perfect haymaker and lay out Matheson, who crashed to the floor, out cold. "Damn…"

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Nomi and Riley both squealed. Nomi babbled frantically into the phone, "Is he unconscious? Fully unconscious?"

"I think so."

"Riley, get Kala. See if she has what she needs to bring Will around. Diego, if you can do anything to guarantee that that man remains completely out, it will help. Will can't be awake if he is."

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Kala began digging through the stash of medical supplies. "It won't be quite as good as before. I'll have to combine these two with the adrenaline. He'll be groggy."

Riley nodded. "I understand."

Sven looked over with concern as Riley began drawing several liquids into a syringe out of three different vials. "Er, Riley? Do you know what those are?"

She smiled at him. "No, but I have help from someone who does." She placed the needle in Will's bicep as directed by Kala and pressed the plunger.

Will rolled his head and slurred, "No, don't…"

"It's all right, Will! Whispers is unconscious right now, it's safe!"

Nomi added, "Your father knocked him out with one punch!"

"My father…what?"

Riley took the phone from Nomi, thumbed the speaker on the phone, and held it near Will's face. "Here, it's your partner, tell him you're all right. It's safe. Talk to Diego."

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Diego took a few more steps back from Gorski arguing with the captain as the voice on the phone changed. "Here, it's your partner, tell him you're all right. It's safe. Talk to Diego."

"Hold on, that's the hot chick with the accent! What the ever-loving fuck is happening?"

"Missed you too, buddy."

"Will!" Diego fought to keep his voice to a whisper. "What is going on?"

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Will fought through the fuzziness in his brain, trying to condense the vital information. "Long story short, I can't come back until that guy my dad decked is either in a permanent coma or dead. He goes around trying to find people like me and Nomi and neutralize us. Then he can use us. That's what happened to Bolger – they operated on his brain and turned him into a human suit, ready for special occasions."

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Diego ran a hand over his head, trying to massage some reality back into the situation. "Dude, how did you know your dad hit him?"

"One last thing. No, two. Tell my dad I love him and I'll try to get in touch somehow when I can. Two, make sure you take that doctor's fingerprints and cross-check with the Sara Patrell case. Sara Patrell. He's the one who took her and then tried his operation on her."

"Holy…no, come on man, you can't leave it like this!"

"Morales, what is the problem? Who's on the phone?"

Diego cut off the call and shoved his phone in his pocket. "Sorry, sir, personal situation." He strode forward and looked down at Matheson. "Sir, I have circumstantial evidence that places this man at the scene of a potential crime that happened several weeks ago. We need to book him, run fingerprints, see if his name's really Dr. Matheson."

Gorski beamed. "Told you! There's no way my boy is a danger to others and it'll be a cold day in hell before I let this dickwad examine my son without a second, third and fourth opinion!"

Sobczak looked between the two of them and the man on the floor, blood gathering at the corner of his mouth from the blow. "What's this evidence?"

"Photos on the phone of a kid that was playing lookout for a gang. I can get the photos today."

"Do it."

"Yes, sir. And, sir?"

"Yes?"

"Run the prints through cold cases. It's just a hunch from something Will said, but we might hit pay dirt."

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Will fell back and Riley cradled him. "There, you did fine."

Kala leaned forward, checking his pulse. "I recommend that we start switching between a couple of drugs to keep him under when we get to the facility. He could build up an immunity if we're not careful."

Riley nodded and Nomi patted her hand. "Whispers is still out, but he'll probably wake up any second."

Will nodded. "We'll make it. If Diego can connect Whispers to Sara Patrell, it'll cause him a lot of grief."

Nomi stood from her crouch, dusting her hands on her jeans. "I'll make sure the cross-check on his prints gets run and brought to their attention if the captain doesn't follow through. Now, you're still about a day away from—a day away. Sorry. No saying where we're headed."

"Right, good strategy." Will rolled to his left slightly, curling more closely to Riley.

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Wolfgang broke off the lap he had been swimming and stood in the shallow end, slicking his hair back. He turned to Nomi, standing at the side of the pool.

"Everything going okay here?"

"Well enough. The police are investigating the incident at my uncle's as a rival group attacking over the missing diamonds. The fact that they managed to find some in the wreckage of Steiner's car is helping that case."

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Kala relaxed her tense shoulders and sank back in the pillows on her bed. She kept her eyes on Wolfgang's face as he lay next to her, refusing to find out if he was naked this time. "That is good."

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"Nomi! Friedman's starting to wake up!"

She whirled at Aminita's voice. "Damn."

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"Okay, Riley. Time to kiss him good night again."

Riley nodded at Nomi and blinked back tears as she took a fresh syringe. "Rest, Will. We've got you." She pressed her lips to his and he brought one hand up to caress her face.

"Love you."

"Love you." She inserted the needle and administered the sedative once more.

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 **Author's** **Note:** Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

Feedback is always welcome!

A couple of hat-tips: (1) Robyn Maddison's "A Trail of Death (and Healing)" for the notion of the sensates' first idea being to get Will to the same private hospital as Felix, though I soon came up with my own idea after that. (2) "Through Thick and Thin" by thenoblehouseofblack for a notion that will be presented in the next chapter, I think. Others have probably thought of these as well, but credit to where I came across them.

And by the way, yes. I love Will's partner Diego and he will prove to be very useful in this story.

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Whispers paced in his cell, trying to work off his fury at the delays. First there had been the long conversation with the police captain, convincing him that Whispers needed access to Gorski's partner. Then Gorski's father had reacted in the exact opposite manner of Mrs. Marks, based on Metzger's records. Nomi's mother had been only too happy to listen, to find a potential medical reason for her son to turn himself into her daughter that took any possible blame away from her. But Gorski had gone into full protector mode, arguing and drawing attention to him, and then actually hitting him!

He couldn't have been out for long, but when he came to, he was the one being presented with a detaining order. He'd demanded to file assault charges and been told that it "would be seen to" after they finished with him. He'd demanded to call his lawyer and the officer playing guard nodded and promised to pass on the request. So far nothing had happened there.

And Gorski remained; hovering in the background and watching him like a hawk until he was processed, fingerprinted, and brought down to a hallway of small jail cells.

And now he was alone. There was no one suitable anywhere nearby to use and certainly no way to make preparations for one of them to leave their location unnoticed even if they were close enough.

Jonas appeared, sitting on the bench and smiling.

"What are you so happy about? And why are you even awake?"

"I'm awake because you gave no orders to keep me sedated. And no one at any of the centers is doing anything without some kind of orders after the chaos of Riley's escape. I'm happy because I can't reach Will. They've figured out something for now that prevents us from accessing him. And if they've figured that out, perhaps they will be the ones to figure out a better solution than Angelica's."

Whispers growled in his throat. "Why? Why did she do it, why did you two break ranks?"

Jonas stood, suddenly deadly serious. "Because we finally learned, after **years** of helping you find other sensates, what you were doing to them after you found them."

"It's the best way! It's—"

"Having a nice chat with yourself, Doctor?"

Whispers whirled to find Will's partner standing on the other side of the cell door. He tugged the lapels of his suit jacket. "I was…thinking out loud."

"Uh-huh. Funny, that. Will's been talking to himself a lot more the last few weeks. And hearing things. And obsessed over some nightmare of a lady killing herself. Except—here's the good part—it's not a nightmare. There's some missing camera footage that waves a big old red flag of something's not right. And then there's actual evidence that you were there during that missing footage. White rental van…helpers in full hazmat suits… Well, let's just say that there's enough evidence to detain you for a bit."

"I'll have your badge for this! I have friends, powerful friends—"

"Who aren't Michael Gorski."

Whispers gaped, astonished that this young punk dared to interrupt him.

"Let me put it to you this way, **Dr. Matheson**. You have pissed off a legend in the Chicago police force. And not only is he pissed off, he's pissed off because of family. You come rolling in with some trumped-up story about Will having brain damage and you need to perform surgery on him? But you won't give him any details to back it up? Add that to the fact that Will's missing in the first place, and you have a capital-A angry father.

"Face it, you are going to be here for a while."

Diego started to leave, then paused as a thought occurred to him. He pulled out his phone and held it close to the bars, bringing up the camera.

"Hey, smile!"

Matheson looked up in time to meet the flash and scowled at him. Diego checked the photo, a perfect shot of the man sitting in a jail cell, and texted it to Will's number. Grinning, he mock-saluted.

"Thank you. Enjoy your stay."

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Wolfgang followed the maid into the resplendent sitting room and found Herr Brecht sitting with his aunt. She looked neat but unfinished, with no makeup on her pale face. She stood and came over to him, clasping his hands as their host tactfully left the room.

"Wolfgang, dear. How are you?"

"All right, I suppose. Why are you here?"

She smiled a little at that. "Direct as always. I wanted to check in on you. We're…well, other than your aunt Marta and her children, we're all that's left."

He nodded, looking down. He dared not look her in the eye. Just as he was incapable of lying to Steiner or anyone who reminded him of his father out of fear, he had never been able to lie to his aunts because they were the closest thing he had to a mother in his life.

 _Lito? I might need you._

The connection felt a bit draggy, as if Lito had been sleeping.

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Lito stirred and looked around. Beside him, Hernando mumbled and Lito ran a soothing hand down his shoulder. On his other side Daniela slept on.

"Go back to sleep. I just need some water."

Easing himself out of the bed, Lito moved downstairs to the kitchen.

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His aunt continued to talk. "I wanted to be sure because I know you must be hurting very much. With Sergei and Steiner being killed and your friend Felix disappearing—"

"No, it's not that." Lito looked up through Wolfgang's eyes and told the woman in front of him something she might want to hear. "Well, yes, it sort of is. You see, I got wind of what was happening. And I made the wrong choice. I tried to call Steiner, but he didn't answer. And because I thought Uncle Sergei was safe with all his guards around, I went to Felix. I moved him from the hospital to somewhere safer, so no one would be able to find him. If I'd thought to go to Uncle first, or even call—" Lito let his voice break slightly and produced just enough wetness in his eyes for a single tear to gather in one corner. "He might still be alive…"

She threw her arms around him and Lito returned the embrace, letting her soothe him. "This was not your fault. Wolfgang. Not your fault. But I am glad to hear that your friend Felix is safe."

She stepped back and pulled a handkerchief from a pocket, dabbing at her eyes. Wolfgang swiped at his own eyes, marveling once more at Lito's acting ability.

"That news fits in well with what I wanted to propose to you. You know your cousin, Gisela?"

He nodded.

"She finished her bachelor's and has moved back home to stay with Marta while she looks for a position. Sergei bought the flat for her in Prague and I know he had intentions of keeping it just in case Markus decided to go to university there as well. Why…why don't you take Felix there? He can recover, and it should put you two out of reach of whoever these animals are that started this feud. Would you do that for me, Wolfgang?"

"What about you?"

She smiled and patted his shoulder. "I think I'll find a nice beach somewhere after the memorial services. You'll come, right? Next week?"

Wolfgang thought rapidly. Riley and Will were due tomorrow. If he took them down to Prague first, he could come back for the services and for Felix. That way eliminated the need to use the private hospital as a waystation for two extra people. He would also have a little time to ease his brother-by-choice into the changed circumstances.

"Yes, aunt. I can be there. May I go to Prague tomorrow? I can set things up and come back."

"That sounds sensible. Yes, just let Marta or Gisela know what time you're passing through Berlin and that you need the keys."

Wolfgang hugged the woman once more. "Thank you. You don't know how much this helps."

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 _He is drifting, anchorless. He floats through memories, trying desperately to keep them harmless, uninformative. Random daily things like exercising—_

 _That brings up the memory of the most bizarre orgasm of his life and he pushes away from it._

 _Hanging out with Diego and the other cops at the bar. Shooting the breeze, drinking, catching a game—_

 _And the terrifying memory of fighting off co-workers/men trying to smother him to death with a plastic bag surfaces. He turns from it frantically._

 _He goes back, back to high school, to when his mother was alive. He remembers her sitting beside him at the dining table, he with homework and she with maps and books and sheets of listings as she worked for her realtors' license. He remembers when she earned her first big commission and bought him his own car._

 _He approaches her, standing beside the blue Audi and holding out the keys. It's a couple years old, chosen to be safe rather than sporty, but it is his and she bought it for him. He reaches out to hug her—_

 _And suddenly she is standing there. Angelica._

 _"You're doing well. It was clever to buy time by drugging yourself. And brave to trust your cluster to rescue you. If Jonas had been with me, really with me, perhaps we could have found a better way as well."_

 _"Are they safe?"_

 _She nods. "Yes, at the moment everyone is safe. Whispers only knows about you, Riley, and Nomi. And he can only get in through you. They know this. They're being careful. They have a plan that might buy some time."_

 _"I tried to get Whispers connected to Sara Patrell. It was him, wasn't it? Operating on her?"_

 _Angelica nods again. "Another good idea. And it's possible. He was in Chicago for a long time as the doctors worked on creating the procedure to decommission the sensates."_

 _"Decomission? Is that what they call lobotomizing innocent people? People like Nomi? Like a_ _ **child**_ _?"_

 _"That's why Jonas and I ran. We discovered that they weren't gathering sensates to protect them. They were using us to find more and take them out if they didn't cooperate, make them living shells to inhabit. Not even the governments they work with know that part. They're only concerned with controlling what they call a dangerous mutation."_

 _He shakes his head. "Never thought I'd end up being an X-man."_

 _Angelica smiles at that and begins to fade away as he feels a faint stinging in one arm. He thinks about calling her back but knows it is useless. He lets himself drift again and this time a restful darkness takes over._

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Diego followed Deshawn back to the same basketball court that had been the previous meeting spot, a small shopping bag in his hand. This time the other gang members noticed their approach but did not fall in behind them.

Lincoln was watching the action this time rather than playing, Clete next to him. Lincoln shook his head as they moved around the court, avoiding the game in action.

"Well, well, if it ain't ol' Pork's buddy, Pork Junior."

Diego ignored the laughter from the few men paying attention. This time he was trusted enough to approach and talk. A few insults were nothing. He gave his attention to the lookout.

"Mr. Tamark, I need your help."

The boy looked up at Lincoln, who rolled his eyes. "Thought our deal was made. What the fuck are you trying to pull?"

"Nothing. That deal stands. The info led us somewhere, and we leave you alone as long as you aren't hurting civilians or burning down buildings. But something's happened and I need to talk to this young man."

Lincoln put a hand on Clete's shoulder, but he shrugged it off. "I'm listening."

"The super-bad in your photos, the old white guy? He's sitting in a jail cell in our station right this minute. The only way we can keep him there is with the photos you took. I got two options for you. One, you email me the photos. That means your email address is part of the chain of evidence, but since you weren't doing anything at the time other than running around, that shouldn't be a problem if you get called as a witness. Two, you trade me your phone for this one." He held up the bag with a familiar logo on the side. "There's a business card in there with my note and signature on the back. The card belongs to my cousin who works there and he's got instructions to activate this phone no questions asked. Already paid for."

Lincoln raised his eyebrows at that. "You're sticking your neck out a bit far on this one. Why?"

Diego looked the man square in the eye. "Because this super-bad is after my partner. And when I mean after I mean he either wants Gorski dead or with barely enough brains left in his head to sit up on his own. I'm not enthused by either of those possibilities. It's too much work trying to break in a rookie to replace him."

Several of the gang members snickered at that one, and Lincoln relaxed a little. He looked over at Deshawn, who seemed upset at what Diego had revealed. He shrugged and took a step back. "Clete, it's your call."

"Can I see the phone?" The child's question got a few more chuckles and some nods from the bystanders.

Diego handed him the bag with the latest version of his phone, at least two upgrades' worth from the one the boy had. Clete's eyes lit up. "Swap!"

"You back up your info recently? Got all your apps?"

"I got it covered." Clete pulled out his phone and held it out.

"Passcode, please?"

Clete punched it in and repeated the number. Diego took the phone and immediately disabled the code. "Anything you want to delete first?"

The boy shook his head. "I clean it up regular"

Diego pocketed the phone. "Gentlemen, I thank you."

Clete held out a hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, sir."

Diego solemnly shook the boy's hand and followed Deshawn back out on a wave of laughter.

Near his SUV, Diego turned to Deshawn. "Need a lift?"

Deshawn shook his head. "Gotta meet my mom, go to the doctor for a check-in. Easier to walk it, or she'll take ages telling you thank you again and we'll be late."

"All right. Thanks, by the way, for the escort."

"Sure. Is…is five-oh gonna be okay?"

Diego reached out and the boy let him pat his shoulder reassuringly. "I hope so."

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Author's Note: Thank you for reading! And join me in crossing fingers for some good news to be announced tomorrow (8/8) about a hoped-for second season!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer** : If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder** : I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

Feedback is always welcome!

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Nomi put the finishing touches on the BOLO, opting in the end for Singapore, and sent it out. Amanita was researching flights. They planned to rent a car and drive north to Portland, where they could fly in either direction and eventually get to Europe. They had to wait on Bug for the fake passports and a driver's license for Amanita.

Feeling able to sit down and have room to think for the first time in days, Nomi was a bit surprised when she felt a deep, crushing grief coming from somewhere. Someone was mourning for a father and she knew it was not her. For one thing her father was alive and well. For another, the only reason she might go to his funeral would be to spit on his corpse.

 _Too bad you didn't keep your original equipment. Easier to piss on him that way._

Nomi stuck a mental tongue out at Wolfgang and felt him chuckle a little in return. So he was in a better mood.

And then she was in a prison cell, sitting across from Sun.

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Sun was a little surprised to find herself sitting at a table in a flat. Though it had plenty of windows, it felt dark compared to her own flat in Seoul. A dark woman with streaked braids was sitting at a computer while Nomi walked around, keeping an eye on several others. She took the opportunity to look around more closely.

The place looked half-finished and Sun realized through Nomi's memories that the authorities had ransacked it once already. What was left looked at once cozy but highly individual, with unusual splashes of color and odd trinkets collected for their sentimental value rather than any attempt at a décor.

Compared to this, her own flat suddenly felt like she had been living in an ice cube.

"Sun, what is it?" Nomi paused from her pacing and sat next to her.

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Sun leaned back against the rough brick wall. "I was thinking about my mother, how desperately I missed her for so much of my life. And then it hit me, both my parents are gone." She swiped at the tears forming in her eyes. "I mean, I know he considered me second best. I know that. But now…now I have no parents at all."

Nomi reached over and took her hand. "I can understand. The day I left my parents for good, my sister tried to talk me out of it. My mother just yelled, saying I'd be back once I realized how big a mistake I was making. But my father…he didn't say anything at all. Not one word. In his mind, I was already dead to him. So I decided he was dead to me as well. And as much as we had fought, as much as I hated some of the things he tried to do to make me into the son he wanted…it still hurt a lot to know that our relationship was over." She reached over and grasped Sun's hand. "But you're not alone. We're here for you."

She glanced around. "Is this a normal cell? I thought I'd seen other women, books and things."

"This is solitary confinement. I defended myself from a group of bullies. Then I attacked my brother when I realized he arranged my father's murder."

"How can we help? We need to get you out of here—the longer you're confined to one place, the easier it will be for BPO to find you. If Metzger's travel record is any indication, Seoul is one of their bases."

"I don't know. I don't know what's happening, whether my lawyer is still pursuing my case now that my father is dead."

"How about the evidence of the embezzlement? If you retract your confession, is what's there enough to get your brother arrested?"

"It's possible. But to get access to the records now would be very difficult."

Nomi grinned. "Maybe not."

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Wolfgang checked the map on the car's GPS. They were far enough out from Leipzig for a change of driver. Riley had been able to borrow Capheus for a bit of confidence during one leg of the journey south of Hamburg before passing through Berlin. They would spell him again until they approached Dresden and possibly once more after crossing the border. He would have to see how difficult the driving might be; the roads in the Czech Republic had a poor reputation. By doing this they had made good time, only stopping for fuel, food and restrooms. Capheus' sheer delight in driving a fast car on the famed Autobahn had been infectious and they were all feeling more cheerful.

He spotted a convenient Aral. "This should be our last stop for fuel before crossing the border."

"Will there be an issue with that?"

"No. Travel between a lot of Eastern Europe is pretty unrestricted. The car already has the pass in its windscreen. You stay in the car, I'll get some food and drinks and fill the tank. Any requests?"

Riley brightened a little. "Some chocolate? Anything dark and plain. And water, of course." She had been able to keep Will somewhat hydrated, letting the sedative almost wear off in order to tip water into his mouth, a capful at a time, before putting him under again. Wolfgang had already bought protein drinks and such at their previous stop to ease Will back onto solid foods after days without.

She sat patiently, laying her head back and pretending to be asleep in case anyone glanced in the car. Wolfgang returned with several bags that he dumped in the front passenger seat, then he turned to her. "Ready for another leg?"

Capheus rubbed his hands together vigorously. "Most definitely."

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Riley was impressed with the place. It had three floors, three bedrooms and two baths, including a garage on the ground floor with yet another spare room and bath. Wolfgang's cousin had clearly allowed friends to stay – the room with a tiny row of windows at the ceiling was furnished with a bed, nightstand, wardrobe, and a wide chest of drawers.

Wolfgang managed to move Will to the bed in a fireman's hold, dumping him as gently as he could. "Damn, he's one heavy bastard." He looked around. "We can do better than this. Some weights, a treadmill, some videogames…we need to make it as hospitable as possible. I can pick up some things when I get Felix. Will you be all right here by yourselves?"

Riley nodded. "I think so. Enough food for a week, a few clothes."

"There's a stack of board games in the sitting room upstairs you can bring down if you get desperate."

She smiled. "We'll manage." As he left to unload the rest of the car, she ran a hand across the white-painted walls that helped to keep the place from looking like a cave. _Nomi, can you come?_

\%\%\%\%\

Nomi made a sweep of her current tasks. The scripts were running to work her way into the Korean firm that was auditing Sun's father's company. She had scrubbed Will's information from the red Porsche rental in Iceland and replaced it with a random address under the Ellison alias Whispers had used. She wanted to try and do something about Capheus' mother to guarantee a supply of her medications but needed more time to figure out how.

Amanita was keeping an eye on the activity in Chicago and could shout for her if anything happened.

"Neets, I'm going to try to grab a nap, but wake me if you need anything."

"Nap or commune with someone?"

"Okay, yes, Riley's asking for me for some reason, but I am going to sleep when I get back."

"Riley…the deejay, right? Taking care of Cop Guy?"

"Yeah."

"Tell them I said hello."

Nomi grinned and planted a kiss on her partner's forehead before lying down on the couch.

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"Okay, what did you need?" Nomi glanced around the unfamiliar room then stilled, seeing Will sprawled in the bed and Riley sitting beside him.

"I wanted to know, since you are also American, if anything in this room tells you where we are."

"Um, okay." Nomi scanned the room, automatically looking for electric outlets. "I'm not sure how helpful this is. I know you're in Germany—"

"Ah, ah, ah!" Riley wagged a finger at her.

"Oh!" Nomi pursed her lips and took a closer look. "Well, it's definitely not the U.S., the plugs are different. There's only the door out and the bathroom door, no closet of any kind for hanging clothes."

Riley pointed to the wardrobe, then got up and began pulling at the chest of drawers to hide the outlet in the wall.

"Huh, okay. Should have remembered that from Narnia." She put a foot on the side of the bed to boost herself up and look out the windows. "Nothing out there but concrete and brick. If you can keep it empty of cars, that will help."

Riley nodded.

Nomi stuck her head in the bathroom. "Okay, this is good. I was afraid there'd be weird letters for 'hot' and 'cold' on the faucets, but these are unmarked. Toilet looks the same, too."

Wolfgang entered, carrying a holdall. "Here's the clothes for Will. All that's left is bringing the food in."

"I'll help. Will should wake in about an hour. Thank you, Nomi."

"No problem. This looks like a good temporary place. Don't tell me where you are yet, just in case."

The others nodded and she disappeared.

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His awareness picked up sound first. A sweet voice, humming a song. Footsteps and shuffling as things were moved.

 _Riley..._

The sound of a gasp and something dropping. "Will?"

 _Riley?_

He could feel his body now, stretched out on something soft and still. It was bliss after the vague awareness of rocking and moving that had lasted for so long. A hand touched his face, caressing it.

"I'm here, Will. We're safe for now. I'll take care of you."

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In his jail cell, Whispers suddenly jerked up. "There you are! Now open your eyes!"

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading! And yay for a second season of "Sense8".


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

Feedback is always welcome!

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"Riley, what happened?" He could feel her presence. He could feel all of them, sending thoughts of relief and welcome that he was back. He squeezed his eyes shut.

"We got away. We're somewhere we can stay for a while. We'll get you healthy again and then decide what to do next." She caressed his hand and he seized hers, clutching it fiercely.

"You need to put me under again. If I'm awake, Whispers will know where I am!"

"Will, do **you** know where you are?"

"Um…no?"

"Remember? Each time we visited one another we had to ask where we were the first time. As long as there isn't anything obvious to show it, Whispers won't know either."

"You're sure it's safe?"

Riley laughed a little at that, leaned in, and kissed his forehead. He felt an electric tingle where her lips met his skin. "I'm sure."

Will opened his eyes to see Riley hovering over him, like a heavenly vision. "Hello."

"Hello." She moved to the head of the bed he was on and grabbed something, then tugged at his shoulder. "Can you sit up a little? Lean on me?"

Together they managed to get him sitting up and resting against her. When he was settled she held up the thing in her hand, a bottle of water stripped of its label. She opened it.

"Go very slowly. You've had nothing but a little water for days. Kala said you'll be very weak, tired, and your heart might feel like it's beating out of your chest at times. Water first, then we'll get some food into you."

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Wolfgang was putting the final round of food in the chiller, perishables bought at the neighborhood market. He closed the door and looked up to find Riley. "Are you here or downstairs?"

"Downstairs. Will's awake. I'll stay with him and come get some food soon."

"I'll bring it down in a little while and put it on that table next to the door. Remember, nothing but liquids for at least the first twelve hours."

"All right."

"I'll stay tonight, get a full night's sleep, then head back tomorrow."

She nodded. "I'll get things ready here for your friend."

"Thank you." He turned to take his own bag to a bedroom on the top floor.

\%\%\%\%\

Whispers looked around the room eagerly. "So, where have you landed, my young friend?"

Will glared at him from his position in Riley's arms. "We are not friends."

Riley looked up. "He's here?"

"Yeah, but he can't do a damn thing about it."

"Really, Will?" Whispers circled the room.

\%\%\%\%\

"Really." Will leaned against the concrete wall behind him and Whispers jumped a little at the shift in their location. "I have no idea where I am right now. You, however…" He trailed his fingers across the bars of the cell. "I know exactly where you are. And I'm very happy with this situation."

"They can't hide you forever!"

"No, but if we can help keep you here, they won't have to. Just think." Will crossed the cell and towered over Whispers, who instinctively shrank from the younger, more powerful man. "Just think, if you get connected to a cold case involving the disappearance of a child, that's legal orders not to leave the state and maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars in bail. You could be pinned down for months, maybe years."

He stood straight again. "And that gives us the time we need to start picking your organization apart. Face it, Doc, right now things are looking up for us."

\%\%\%\%\

Whsipers scowled at Will in impotent anger. He could do nothing here. All he could tell was that Will was in a room somewhere with no view. He guessed from the furniture they were either still in Iceland or possibly back in England, though how that wisp of a girl could have managed to transport a comatose man that far was a mystery.

"You can't stall forever. There are plenty of others who can help me."

"Like who? Jonas? He's been fighting you ever since this mess started."

\%\%\%\%\

"You rang?"

Will looked up to find Jonas standing on the other side of the jail cell. "Hello again."

Jonas held out a hand and Will slapped palms with him in greeting. Then Jonas turned and kicked at Whispers, who tried to move but did not avoid contact. "Ouch!"

"Interesting."

"Why interesting?" Will looked back at Jonas from watching Whispers rub his leg.

"If I'm not mistaken, we're all perceiving each other by visiting one another at the same time. Can you…?" Jonas waved a hand between the two of them.

Will was not about to turn down such an invitation. He strode over and seized Whispers by his lapels, dragging him to his feet and giving him a tooth-rattling shake, then shoving him back down on the bench. The older man's face paled as he realized he was now outnumbered.

Jonas looked thoughtful. "This is definitely a first for me, and from the look on your face I'd say the same for you. We are from three different clusters, but can all visit and affect the other—"

\%\%\%\%\

Will gave a little mental push and was suddenly in the lab where Jonas was imprisoned. Whispers spun around, stunned at the sudden change of location.

"And in any place one of us happens to be? Not bad. Pity you've proven you're not on the side of the angels, Mr. Whispers. Because I'm certainly not going to give you any more chances to explore this." He turned to Jonas. "We will try to help you, Jonas."

\%\%\%\%\

Will brought his awareness back to his own body and relaxed when he saw that Whispers had retreated. Jonas glanced around the room and nodded approvingly. "Not bad. I could make an educated guess as to your location, but it covers several countries' worth of territory. Keep being this clever and I'll start to believe your cluster has a chance of survival. But be careful. Never let your guard down for an instant."

"Thank you, Jonas." The older man left.

Riley set the water bottle on the nightstand. "Jonas again. I don't know that we can trust him."

"I think we can. Given that Angelica killed herself to protect us and Jonas has been trying to inform us about the situation from the start…I'm going to be careful, but I think he's on our side."

Will tried to sit up and immediately fell back. Riley tried to brace them both, but his weight won out and they went down on the bed in a tangled embrace. "Will, what is it?"

"Ugh, dizzy. Heart pounding, like you said."

"Here, more water. And I'll get a couple of protein drinks." She exited the room and Will could hear her footsteps as she paused at the door, then climbed stairs to an upper floor. He tried to puzzle out how he could have felt fine while visiting Whispers in the jail cell but so weak and shaky here.

A cool hand on his forehead startled him.

"Sorry, I felt your symptoms and came to check on you. Is it just the heart rate and dizziness? No vomiting or fever?" Kala put her hand to his forehead again.

"No, water's staying down so far."

\%\%\%\%\

She moved to her dresser and picked up a cup. Will watched from her bed as he sipped more water from his bottle.

Kala fidgeted with the cup. "That's good. I think the plan was to start you on liquid meals, so as not to shock your digestion."

"Who knows where we are?"

\%\%\%\%\

She sipped from her chai and set it on his chest of drawers. "Only a couple of us know exactly where you are now. There was a plan, but something happened to make it better, so you could be allowed to wake up sooner. And this way everyone is a little more protected for now – Riley is the only one you'll see in person for the next several days."

Will nodded. "How are you doing? It was kind of hard to tell with everything that was going on, but you and Wolfgang?"

She picked up her cup. "We haven't had the opportunity to properly discuss things. We will."

Wolfgang turned and glared at both of them, folded clothes from his satchel in his hand. "No, we won't. I told you, you have to marry Rajan."

"And who are you to tell me how to live my life? First you interrupt my wedding, completely naked—" Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Will's expression change from worried to curious. "—and tell me I can't marry Rajan because I don't love him. Then after I help you save your life and survive your family, you tell me I have to marry him! You don't get to decide these things! If you have decided that you don't want me, that is for you to say. But if I've decided I do want you, you can't stop me from trying!"

"You can't feel that way about me! You know what I am!"

She flung the liquid in her cup and Wolfgang gaped at her, chai dripping from his face.

"I know what you've **done**! There's a difference!"

Will staggered up to put himself between them. "Hey, hey! This is no time to let ourselves lose focus by arguing!"

Wolfgang unfolded one of the shirts in his hand and began drying his face. Kala took a breath as if she were about to go on, but suddenly stopped, looking at the empty cup and back at Wolfgang. "I…I'm sorry for that."

Before either of the men could respond, she left.

Will glanced at Wolfgang. "You okay?"

Wolfgang nodded.

"Going somewhere?" Will indicated the clothing in his hand.

"I'm going to get Felix out of the hospital where I hid him. I have a better place for him now. And I need to try and explain all this to him, somehow."

Will clapped him on the shoulder. "Be safe."

Wolfgang nodded and left.

\%\%\%\%\

In the upstairs bedroom, Wolfgang tossed the stained shirt aside and put the rest of the stack in his hand in a drawer. As he continued to divide things into what was staying in Prague and what was going with him back to Berlin, Kala's declaration rang in his ears.

 _I know what you've done. There's a difference._

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

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Nomi Marks considered herself a pretty smart person. But once in a while she had a really great idea. A genius-level, perfect idea.

Tracking the audits of the embezzlement that Sun had confessed to was proving tricky, because a huge chunk of the evidence was actually on paper or had been moved to off-network storage. But then it occurred to her: if Sun's brother was so desperate to steal money that he would not only accept his sister taking the fall for him but kill their father to prevent him testifying, he might be stupid enough to keep stealing.

She had set up new alerts on the back of the system the auditors had begun using in their investigations and the first one had tripped. She flagged it so the auditors would be notified of the new fraudulent activity. And since she was in the Korean networks anyway, she got into the police record of Sun's father's suicide and changed its status to "questionable", fabricating a report from the prison, using Sun's memories, which documented Kang-Dae's visit, the lawyer bringing papers, and Sun's attack on Joong-Ki, accusing him of murder.

Either way, she hoped to get Sun out of prison inside of a week.

"How are things going?" Will stood beside her, sipping from a bottle.

\%\%\%\%\

"Pretty well." She shared the steps she had taken for Sun, pacing his room while he lay on the bed. "What's that?"

He held up the unmarked bottle. "Protein shake. If I wolf down the double cheeseburger I'm currently craving, I'd probably throw it up again. At least that's what Kala says."

"Good to know if we have to go the Sleeping Beauty route again. Did you need something?"

"I want to get in touch with my dad or Diego. Find out whether they're going to be able to keep Whispers in jail or not."

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She picked up a cell phone from the table next to her monitors and handed it to him. "I hope to get one of these to everyone soon. It's one of the prepaid disposable mobiles that people sometimes use for international travel. If it starts getting tracked, I can wipe it and start it over clean."

"Nice. What do I do?"

"Put in the numbers you want and call as needed. There's plenty of minutes on it. I'd recommend adding the numbers of the rest of us, both old and new phones, but under code names."

"I'll be Javier."

They looked over at Lito.

"What brings you here?" Nomi asked.

Lito shrugged. "I heard you say everyone. I thought there might be a meeting."

Nomi grabbed her own phone and handed it to him. "Here, put in your current number. And why Javier?"

"That was the name of the character in the first role I ever played." Lito added the number to her contact list.

"Have you got your phone? Here, let me put our numbers in." Nomi took his phone and began creating an entry for herself. "Does 'Laura' for me and 'María' for Amanita work for you?"

"Sure, sure. Where's Amanita?"

"Taking a much-needed nap."

Will pulled his own phone out to get the numbers he needed. He automatically opened the text message from Diego and snorted. "Nice."

"What?" Nomi looked and grinned at the picture of Whispers behind bars. "Yes, very nice."

Lito glanced up to see the texted photo and threw up a hand. "Careful! What if they do the finding your phone thing?"

Will's smile faded. "Oh, shit."

"Give it here." Nomi held out a hand.

Both men relaxed at her calm tone and watched, ready to be dazzled by her technological prowess once again.

She put the phone into airplane mode and handed it back to Will. Realizing the two were staring at her, she shrugged. "Most phone trackers only work if the phone is connected to a network. Either stay in airplane mode or turn it off and you're fine."

"You're kidding me." Will looked from the phone to Nomi and back.

"As they used to say, RTFM." When they both looked at her, lost, she continued. "Read the Fucking Manual."

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Lito laughed out loud at that. It took a moment for him to register that he was the only one. He glanced around his penthouse, seeing Will and Nomi as they studied their new surroundings…

And Daniela, who had just emerged from the shower, wrapped only in a towel.

"What's so funny, Lito?"

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Wolfgang heard movement in the bedroom across from his and found Riley putting away the few clothes she had picked up as they traveled. She jumped slightly at seeing him.

"I just…I thought your friend ought to have the bedroom on the main floor."

"Yes, that's true, but why aren't you staying with Will?"

She shook her head. "It's quite possible I'll sleep in his bed tonight, just to make sure he's all right. But I don't want to presume anything."

"Why the fuck not? I mean, even among the eight of us the connection you two have is incredibly strong."

"And I don't want that connection to push us too fast in one direction. That's what you're doing with Kala—"

"What I am or am not doing with Kala is none of your business!"

Riley looked at him with pity and stepped forward. "Wolfgang, what you two decide to do is up to you. But you can't say it's none of our business. You're feeling just as much as the rest of us are. Your pain is our pain. Your happiness is our happiness. We're all here for one another. I understand that now."

She reached out and put her arms around him. "And I'm here if you want to talk about it."

She pressed her cheek against his and suddenly they were clutching one another, trying to stay upright as their minds seized up in a maelstrom of each other's memories…

 _Riley is cracking a safe, listening for each tiny click of a tumbler through the stethoscope as Felix hovers near the window._

 _Wolfgang is flipping through the music on his iPod with one hand and taking a hit of hash with the other._

 _Riley is standing in front of the crowd, next to the karaoke machine, while Felix and the girls cheer her on…_

 _…and then is standing in front of the audience in the auditorium, frozen and unable to begin as her father laughs mockingly from the door._

 _Wolfgang is_ _walking across the dark sand and rock that covers the beach, as he sings a haunting lullaby in a sweet voice._

 _Riley stands over her uncle, watching him as he realizes that he's about to die for his crime of doing nothing to help free her from years of torment, then starts pulling the trigger._

 _Wolfgang collapses in the snow, clutching his baby to him, knowing that it's too late, that she is dead and he is about to die as well._

They finally managed to break apart, holding onto one another and gasping for air.

"What the fuck was that?"

"It was…I think I felt something like that before with Will. But it was stronger with him."

"I don't understand! Why you and Will? Why us? That's never happened before!"

Riley looked up at him, concentrating fiercely. "We're the only ones who are together. Perhaps, perhaps it has to do with touching for real."

"I didn't feel it when I carried Will from the car."

"He was unconscious…but no, I was drugged in the hospital." Riley frowned, reenacting picking up someone and slinging them across the shoulders. "He was wearing his jacket…did you touch his skin?"

Wolfgang considered that. "I don't think so. I was holding onto his arm and legs."

"Then perhaps that's it. Skin-to-skin contact, creating an even stronger connection. We should test it—"

"After I get back with Felix. If Will knows I'm really here, then he knows where we're likely to be."

"True." Riley was reluctant to let it go, but Wolfgang took her by one shoulder and jostled her encouragingly.

"We'll find a better opportunity. Now, go back and take care of Will. I need to call the hospital and let them know I'm picking Felix up in a few days."

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Capheus rolled off the sofa that doubled as his bed and groaned. The Spirit of Jean-Claude Korean Lady might be able to take down a dozen men without blinking, but it was his body that had done the fighting and he was still one solid ache. He had jumped at the chance to help Riley drive not only because it was a beautiful car on a glorious road, but also because she had mostly recovered from her ordeal and it felt healthy to be one with her.

Shiro thrust a cup of water in his hand and a pair of pills.

"What is this?"

"A couple of my morphine pills. Take them."

"No…no, mother. Paracetamol is fine." He tried to give them back.

"Paracetamol is not fine. Neither is Brufen. I can attest to that. You must go talk to Jela about how to repair the bus and you must be ready for anything. You don't know how many of that gang are left to try and attack you. Take the pills."

Reluctantly, Capheus swallowed the pills and accepted the breakfast Shiro had prepared. The medication worked and by the time he was done, he could move freely, though the soreness lingered. He accepted the freshly-ironed shirt she gave him.

He was gathering his things when he realized that the usual commotion out in the street had fallen off. Warily he looked out the window. When he saw the limousine and who was getting out of it, he stiffened.

He moved to the door to meet them. "Mr. Kabaka. Amondi."

Amondi ran forward and hugged Capheus. He smiled at the girl and moved aside a little. "Miss Amondi, may I present my mother, Shiro? Mother, this is Mr. Kabaka's daughter, Amondi."

Amondi bobbed a curtsey and Shiro came forward. She raised her hands and cupped Amondi's face. "You are one of the most beautiful young ladies I have ever seen."

"Thank you."

"May Amondi stay inside with you for a few minutes? I have something I need to discuss with Capheus here."

"Of course. Would you like something to drink, Amondi?"

His mother's voice faded as Kabaka led him back to the limousine and turned to face him. Capheus noted that the man's face was mostly back to its normal shape, but blotched with shiny bruises and scabs.

"I know you said you did not want my money. And I am not here to try and persuade you to come back to my service. But I wish to offer two things as my thanks, because you did save my life and my daughter's."

"Mr. Kabaka—"

"Please? Hear me out?"

Capheus sighed and nodded.

Kabaka smiled and waved one hand in the air. One of his men, positioned several meters away, waved back. A loud motor sounded and suddenly a large black bus turned the corner and started down their road. It was half again as large as the Van Damn and brand new. Faces began appearing at windows to see what was happening.

Kabaka turned back to Capheus, whose mouth had dropped open. "All that's left is the paint job, which I will pay for."

"I…Mr. Kabaka, this is unnecessary!"

"Is your current matatu not sitting in the yard of the cheapest mechanic in town, awaiting an estimate to repair the engine, replace the glass and tires, and fill dozens of bullet holes to make it street legal again?"

"Well, yes, but—"

"But nothing. I know you won't be able to pay for repairs for weeks, possibly months. And your source of income was destroyed because you used it in defense of my child and myself. Let me return your livelihood to you."

Capheus bowed his head, considering. "No strings attached?"

"No strings. I meant what I said. While I would consider you one of the best men to ever work for me, I will respect your choice."

Capheus immediately added _for now_ mentally.

"Very well, but I give my thanks in return. But what about Amondi? Her treatments?"

Kabaka smiled. "That leads us to the second part of what I wish to offer you. May we go inside to discuss it?"

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Lito whirled to face Daniela and stammered, "I didn't know you were there! I was…I was practicing a laugh. There's a scene in the movie where I have to pretend to find something funny and laugh."

Daniela raised one eyebrow at him and adjusted her towel. "Well, that sounded more like a genuine laugh to me."

"Thank you. I will keep practicing."

She reached over and touched his nose, which no longer bled but was still swollen and bruised. "I think you'll have time for it. It's going to be another day or two before you're at the makeup stage."

He nodded and lifted her chin with his fingers. "You, however, are almost ready for your closeup."

The rattle of keys in a lock and a door opening interrupted them, followed by Hernando's voice singing out, "Honeys, I'm home!"

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

 **Thanks:** A quick tip of the hat to Poetry and their fic "The Courage of Our Hearts" over on Archive of Our Own for a bit of inspiration. Ultimately I decided that Daniela is the type to observe but not necessarily connect the dots on her own, but this was the fic that gave me the notion of Hernando and Daniela comparing notes as they start to realize that something's up with Lito. I really recommend that story (note the "explicit" rating) as a neat study of Daniela's motivations and character.

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"Morales! Get in here!"

Diego got up from his desk, gathering the file on Sarah Patrell with the fingerprint report from Matheson on top and the file with Clete's photos at the abandoned church. Matheson' prints were a perfect match to a previously unidentified set found in the living room of the girl's house, the last place she had been seen before disappearing. He waved to Michael Gorski, who was leaning against the desk of one of the lieutenants and trading stories. Gorski excused himself and hobbled over, following Diego into Sobczak's office.

The captain was not alone. Two men in suits were already there, sitting in chairs facing a single empty chair across from Sobczak's desk. Diego immediately realized he was being set up. The only question was whether the captain was taking the initiative or being leaned on by whoever was represented by the suits.

"Mr. Gorski, this is a personnel matter."

"Screw you, Sobczak. The only thing Morales has been working on all day is the Matheson situation. That means anything you have to say to him has to do with my boy being missing."

Diego offered him the chair, which he took, stretching his leg out.

The gentleman in the tan suit cleared his throat. "Mr. Gorski, this case has serious implications, given your son was trying to push his way into more contact with a terrorist. You should let us handle it."

"You try to remove me and I'll be calling in everyone who could owe me a very large favor if I asked, from the mayor to one of our U.S. representatives. And if you want your goddamn shiny teeth to keep their caps, you won't even think of finishing that train of thought. My kid is not colluding with terrorists."

"If Maliki is even a terrorist," Diego added.

He found himself the recipient of two death glares from the suits and total confusion from Sobczak.

"I mean…the man appeared on the DHS lists less than a month ago and was important enough for an immediate briefing. But the very same night he approached Will for a chat. Not exactly the behavior of someone trying to keep a low profile, walking up to a cop." He glared at the captain. "And then the minute Will does anything semi-official to investigate, you're on his ass warning him or suspending him. What was the signal for you people?" Diego turned his attention to the suits. "BPO? Niles Bolger? Nomi Marks?"

Navy Suit spoke this time. "Officer Morales, you are about to push yourself from a reprimand or suspension to being arrested for obstruction in a federal case."

Diego froze at that, but Gorski snorted.

"Your buddy there just blinked. He thinks you've overplayed your hand. And this useless ass-kisser of a captain is ready to shit his pants at the thought of ANY of this getting out."

That got Diego's brain firing again. "Captain, I don't know why these men seem to think Matheson is important enough to protect by issuing threats, but I have some facts to lay out. One, copies of the photos showing him on the scene of an unreported situation in our precinct, removing what looks an awful lot like a body with a bunch of people in full hazmat protection. Were you notified of this? And I don't know how, but Will knew this had happened. He talked about a nightmare, seeing a woman shoot herself, and recognized the church even though we'd never been by it before. When we went in, he knew where she had hidden a drug stash and the gun. He went back through security camera footage of the place for the night he had that dream, and two hours had been erased."

Gorski was suddenly listening to him very intently.

"Two, there's the fingerprint report. Matheson's prints match a set of unknowns found in the house of one Sarah Patrell, a cold case of a child who vanished without a trace seventeen years ago. I already put those results into our records, according to procedure. The local stations always check those records by two-thirty in case there's something worth reporting on the five o'clock news."

Everyone glanced at the clock on Sobczak's wall that read 3:14, except Gorski. He looked up at Diego.

"That bastard had something to do with Sarah Patrell disappearing? And now he's after Will? He came in with some garbage about Will having a disease and needing brain surgery! There's nothing wrong with my son! He was right about Sarah! He was right and I didn't believe him!"

Diego glared at the suits. "Seems like Matheson and his cronies want to poke around in the skulls of lots of people. Niles Bolger, who got up and walked out of his nursing home after being a total vegetable for years. Nomi Marks, suddenly thrown into a high-security wing of a hospital and scheduled for brain surgery against her will until she managed to escape. And now an officer of the CPD whose record was clean as a whistle until last week?"

Sobczak's desk phone rang, making them all jump. The captain picked up the phone, "Now's not a good time."

The voice of the desk receptionist came through at high volume from the handset. "Captain, I have two news crews here that are demanding information about a breakthrough in a cold case. The disappearance of Sarah Patrell?"

"Fucking hell." Sobczak let his head drop into his free hand.

\%\%\%\%\

Capheus led Kabaka back inside and they found Shiro and Amondi chatting happily over cups of tea. Amondi had pulled out her tablet and was showing Shiro an app that held some of her favorite comic books.

Capheus waved the man to a chair and then sat next to his mother. "All right, Mr. Kabaka. What is the second part of your…gift?"

"You are aware that Amondi has been undergoing treatment to keep her leukemia in check."

Capheus nodded.

"A match has been found for a bone marrow transplant, which is Amondi's best chance of beating the disease. The donor in question is in Hong Kong. I have arranged for the transplant to be performed in a state-of-the-art facility in India. Mumbai."

Capheus tried to hide his reaction, and Kabaka continued as if he had not noticed.

"There is also a facility there that has made some striking advances in antiviral therapy. They can suppress the symptoms of AIDS for months at a time. I would like to sponsor your mother's treatment there, if you would travel with us."

Capheus blinked and Shiro sat up a little straighter. Capheus tried to frame his question politely. "Why is it important that we travel with you?"

"It simplifies my preparations. And it gives Amondi a chance to spend time with a woman who is not her teacher or her maid. While I have tried my best, I know Amondi deserves a more motherly figure in her life."

Amondi jumped up and hugged him. "Dad! You're the best ever! I don't need a mom!"

Kabaka chuckled and hugged her back. "Thank you, light of my life. But I know what is true. I think getting to know this remarkable woman can only be a good thing."

Capheus' thoughts raced through the situation. Clearly Kabaka had learned that Capheus did not respond well to intimidation and was trying to maintain the relationship by presenting a more gracious face, even as he honed in on the one thing that could make Capheus continue associating with him. His mother's health.

The down side was staying near Kabaka and losing income as the Van Damn remained sidelined for longer, losing the success gained by his actions against the Superpower gang.

The up side included medical treatment for his mother that would at the very least make her more comfortable and possibly extend her life long enough for a cure to be found.

And going to Mumbai gave him a chance to meet Kala in person.

"Mr. Kabaka, if we travel with you, that delays my return to work."

Kabaka held up a hand. "I have three of my men who are prepared to drive your bus in your absence. They will support your conductor and if you wish they will stay here and guard your home while you are gone."

At that point Shiro spoke up. "Mr. Kabaka, your generosity has become too much. Why is my son's situation so important to you?"

Kabaka looked over at her, then at Amondi. "As I have said, I owe both my life and my daughter's life to him. And perhaps for the first time, I have found a man of a rare courage and conviction who cannot be tempted nor threatened without him finding a way around the situation." He turned back to Capheus. "If I cannot have you working for me, then I wish to have you work beside me. Perhaps I will learn something this way."

Capheus looked over at his mother, who nodded slightly but with her eyes narrowed. She was only partly satisfied with that answer but willing to go along. He held out a hand. "Very well, then. I will accept both your gifts."

Amondi squealed and jumped up, flinging her arms around Capheus' neck before the men could shake hands. "It's going to be fun! We're going to fly and visit India and see the world!"

Capheus had to admit, hugs from Amondi certainly made the situation feel a little better.

\%\%\%\%\

Several days had passed since bringing Daniela home. There had been no sign at all of Joaquín using the pictures and Lito was beginning to worry. After a long discussion with Hernando, Lito decided to start with a visit to his agent to admit his sexuality and ask for advice on a strategy for exiting the closet. It was Hernando's day off and he began catching up on several things that he had let slide during the upheaval.

As he folded laundry, he set his phone to speaker and began playing through his backlog of voicemails. After the first few unimportant ones, he slowed down and stopped, listening to Lito as his messages got more drunken and frantic, rising to a fever pitch that sounded for all the world like he was considering suicide.

 _"I have all these voices in my head, but yours, it's the only one I can't live without."_

Hernando saved that one and listened through to the end, to Lito's sudden determination to do the right thing. His tone, his attitude, everything was a complete one-eighty from earlier.

Hernando saved the last message, and listened to the previous one again. Mechanically, he finished folding the clothes, thinking about that phrase… _voices in my head._ He thought of a hysterical Lito, breaking down in traffic and talking about seeing a crying Korean woman as he complained about abdominal pain and claimed not to know where he was.

As he began putting the folded clothes away, Daniela arrived from an audition. Hernando's spirits lifted a little, seeing her fully healed and radiant, and he came down to meet her, kissing her cheeks.

"How did the audition go?"

"I don't know. I think I'll get a callback, but I'm not quite sure that I can give them exactly what they want. I'm not sure I can play the character as dumb as they want."

"And you shouldn't have to. A better role will come along." He steered her to the sofa. "I want to ask you something."

"Of course."

"I know you and Lito had only been on a few dates before you arrived on our doorstep." He paused as she blushed a brilliant red, remembering her performance at his door. "Anyway. You may not have as much of an idea as I do, but it seems like Lito has been acting differently for some weeks now. He woke up one night from a bad dream, and it affected him on the set for several days. He couldn't remember his lines, he was distracted. It seemed to get better, but he's still had moments."

Daniela nodded, remembering the day Lito had rear-ended another car and Hernando's description of him seeing things.

Hernando held out his phone. "Listen to the two saved messages."

She put one hand to her mouth, listening to Lito's declaration that he couldn't live without Hernando. Her expression changed to confusion at the confidence in the next message.

"I think that must have been when he decided to come get me."

"Dani, please, think a moment. You said that Lito fought Joaquín, just like one of his movies."

"Yes! It was amazing!"

"But, Lito doesn't know how to fight. He knows the moves for **staging** a fight for a camera, but he has never given me any indication that he knows how to really fight. And I've known him for a long time."

"But he did! Joaquín caught him off-guard with the first punch, and Lito missed the first few times—"

"Because he's been trained to aim in front of the target?"

Daniela frowned. "Well, maybe. But then he landed a really good one!"

"And what happened next?"

She stared into space, trying to remember. "Joaquín got him a few more times, then threw Lito over a hedge. That's when I tried to stop him by hitting him with a shovel…"

Hernando could guess what Joaquín might have done next and tried to push her past that part. "What did Lito do?"

"He came up with flowerpots in his hands, throwing them at Joaquín."

"See? That sounds like Lito, like a scene from a movie."

"And then Joaquín knocked him down hard and kicked him, and it looked like he was finished."

"Then what happened?"

"He…he got up. And stated in a really cold way that they weren't done."

"A cold way?"

"Yes, really…flat, businesslike. Almost like he was talking about the weather."

"And they started again?"

"I suppose you could say so. Lito gave him one shot…all it did was turn his head. He just…absorbed it. And then he started laying into Joaquín." Her expression turned worried. "Now that you're asking, it was different. Calculated, precise. If Lito could fight that well, why didn't he do so from the beginning?"

Hernando sat back and nodded. "Thank you. Thank you for telling me."

She turned to him, her eyes pleading. "Is something happening to Lito?"

He sighed. "I think so. But I have no idea what."

\%\%\%\%\

Nomi watched as Amanita finished wiping the iPad clean, removing all traces of her mother's account. As Grace almost never used the blasted thing after they gave it to her the previous Christmas, they felt justified in asking to borrow it for a while. Nomi then created a dummy account, still using Metzger's credit card since the ass had never bothered to set up any fraud protections and there was still no trace of his murder on the news.

She tossed in some popular apps and games and established a large credit so Will could buy more if he wanted. Now Amanita watched as she put together a shopping bag of tech.

"Tablet, hotspot, solar USB charger, hub, and cables. Hopefully this will keep him up to date and occupied as long as he's stuck inside."

Amanita toyed with one of her braids. "Should we try to get in touch with his partner?"

"I'm not sure. I think Will should make contact next. He's got a way to do it now."

"I still can't believe you all can just hand each other stuff across oceans and continents. That is so cool! Instant delivery and no shipping fees!"

Nomi shrugged. "I didn't even think about it until Will and Lito were here. I could feel them, I could hand things to them. Will was holding the travel phone when he left and it left with him. So I'll bring this stuff to him and see if we can pull everyone together for a meeting tomorrow. Three of us are in the same time zone now, but it's still going to be stupid-early for me and stupid-late for Sun."

"Such are the hazards of a global network," Amanita replied.

Nomi snorted at that. Amanita reached over and took her hand.

"Got time for a little networking with me?"

\%\%\%\%\

Will emerged from the bathroom, relishing the feeling of being clean. Judging from the state of his clothes and the itching of his skin, at least four or five days must have passed while he was out of commission. And while intellectually he appreciated the presence of the adult diaper when he stripped for the shower, he would be very happy never to know who had taken care of that detail.

He put on the T-shirt and sweatpants, noting that all the tags had been cut out. He glanced around, examining the room that would be his own kind of prison for the foreseeable future. The light coming from the row of small windows near the ceiling was fading as the sun set. He moved to turn on the one lamp in the room and wondered if he could ask for another one.

He was debating whether to bother putting on his shoes again as he wasn't going anywhere when Riley knocked and entered with a tray. She had another of those protein drinks and more water with the labels torn away, but this time there was real food. His stomach rumbled loudly as the smells hit him.

"You should still eat slowly and not too much at once, according to Kala. But I made some eggs and toast."

He took the tray from her and set it on the chest. He reached out and pulled her close, embracing her tightly. He shared his last memory of fear and desperation and hope before the drugs had taken effect and his relief that they had found a safe harbor for now. She shared the memory of her stumbling to her feet and staggering down the slope to get in the ambulance, her resolve chipping away at the agonizing memories of Magnús and Lúna because Will was here and needed her now.

"I knew you could do it. Thank you."

She snuggled into him, then drew back. She ran a hand over his face. "You need to shave."

"I will, after I eat." He sat on the bed and let her bring him the tray.

As he dug in, holding himself to a slow pace, she went into the bathroom and collected his clothes. "This place has a laundry. I'll wash your things. And I'll see if I can find something for you to do for now."

Nomi appeared, a shopping bag in her hand, in time to hear the last of Riley's comment. "I think I can help with that."

Will finished the toast and set the tray to the side so he could stand. "Oh, really?"

"Here, early happy birthday." She handed him the bag.

Will reached in and pulled out the iPad. "What's this?"

"Entertainment. You've got a hotspot with a big enough data plan that should last as long as you don't watch too many videos or stream movies. There's a credit on this account if you want more apps. And this is a solar charger that you can leave in the window so you don't have to worry about having access to electricity if we have to move you again. It's a bit slow, but it'll do the job and keep both devices and the phones charged if you're patient. All the cables you need, including an extra for your own phone."

Will plowed into the bag, astonished. Riley moved in and hugged Nomi. "Thank you!"

Will looked up. "Yeah, seriously, thank you."

"Just trying to help, as you once again charged forward without a plan."

"Well, you all seem to have a knack for recovering."

"Just don't push us too hard. Now, is there anything else I can bring you from San Francisco?"

Will looked through the bag again. "Earbuds? I could listen to music that way."

"I can do that. But you've got plenty of money in the iTunes store to buy it rather than stream it."

Will nodded and Riley looked at the tablet wistfully. "I wonder where my iPod is."

Will reached over and put an arm around her. "Probably with your dad. He was in the hospital with you the whole time until they transferred you to BPO. But hey, we can both choose music."

Riley nodded as Will handed her the tablet to look over and Nomi began pointing out things to her. He felt his heartbeat hammering away again and sat on the bed to recover. A wave of depression swept over him as the enormity of the situation hit him. He was exiled from his home for who knew how long and had seven others to keep safe. How long was it going to be before he could see his father or friends? Would he ever have his job back? What would happen to his apartment? Would he ever be able to go home and not look over his shoulder for the rest of his life? He put his hands over his face, fighting the sudden urge to cry.

Nomi broke off from her conversation with Riley and knelt in front of him, gently pulling his hands away so he would look at her. Her expression said she felt his pain and understood exactly what he was feeling. "We'll fight for you, Will. We'll protect you, the way you've been protecting us." She wiped away the few tears that had escaped and were trailing down his face. "I owe you my existence – without you to get me out of that operating room, I wouldn't be here. It may take a while, but we are going to get our lives back."

She leaned forward and put her arms around his neck. Riley slid beside him and he put an arm around each of them. Nomi shifted to include Riley and they held each other close, drawing comfort and strength from their connection. They would be there for each other.

\%\%\%\%\

Kala approached the temple slowly, looking for the radicals that had attacked Manendra, but they were nowhere to be seen. She walked to her usual spot in front of the statue of Ganesha and reached into the straw bag. She pulled out her offering and laid it at the feet of the statue, bowing as she did so.

"My lord Ganesha, I must appeal to you as the Remover of Obstacles. For there is a very large obstacle in my path and the path of my…my friends. I have an idea what to do, but I will need your guidance and wisdom. And, regrettably, I think I will need aid from another source to succeed."

She took out a second offering and moved across the temple to another statue. This one was human in appearance, smiling serenely down at her, a snake coiled around his neck and four arms instead of two.

"My lord Shiva, I know I have never sought your guidance before and am not worthy of your attention. However, I believe there will soon come a time where I must act as your hand in order to protect myself and my friends. I pray you will accept my offerings and grant me your strength as we try to survive."

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

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He had been in the cell for hours, the end of the business day approaching, before they finally came and brought him to a room to consult with a lawyer. BPO had sent over someone new, a young man that he didn't know at all. A thread of worry embedded itself in his mind, realizing that most of those who could be trusted with full knowledge of the mission were of his generation or older, aging and dying at too fast a rate. The need to eliminate Metzger had been a huge blow, leaving just two other surgeons worldwide that could be trusted to try the operation without him.

"Dr. Matheson, I'm Jeremy Cox. I've been given information about your situation and I have to be honest, sir. You've got yourself in a right mess."

"How? I was the one that was assaulted! How can I be the one being detained?"

"As you were informed, according to your own signature on this document, an officer identified you as being present on the scene of a potential crime. He has since produced these photographs, which very clearly are of you." Cox slid over a print and he paled, recognizing the collecting of Angelica's body.

"Now, it's just barely possible that we can work this one out. The pictures were taken by a questionable witness, one that the police are trying to shield. We can try to use our resources at the federal level to explain why local authorities weren't notified of a potentially hazardous situation. However…"

Cox looked in a file folder and pulled out a flyer with the picture of a young girl. Large letters across the top begged: HAVE YOU SEEN ME?

"They took your fingerprints, which they had the right to include in the process. But for some reason they ran them through the database of unknowns in open and cold cases. And your prints were identified as being found in this child's house. She disappeared without a trace."

He swallowed hard. He remembered Sarah Patrell very well. She had died during one of his early, secretive attempts at the procedure that lobotomized sensates without destroying the key elements that allowed visitation across clusters. It was through her that he began to find the way. He also remembered a boy sneaking in, spying and escaping. He was almost certainly another sensate that Sarah had managed to summon.

 _A boy…a boy here in Chicago? Could it have been Will Gorski?_

His mind raced with the possibilities. If Gorski's sensate abilities had been partly woken that early, it explained how quickly he had begun to grasp the possibilities after Angelica fully birthed his cluster.

Cox interrupted his train of thought. "I take it, Doctor, that this is going to be a sticky situation?"

He rubbed one hand under his glasses and down his face. "What options do we have?"

"I can try to get the first court appearance scheduled in the next couple of days. I think the best we can hope for is a large bail amount and a restriction not to leave the city. The local news stations have already started leading with news of a breakthrough in this cold case. With the publicity, it's going to be hard to convince a judge to let you out of jail."

"Do it. BPO will post the bail."

\%\%\%\%\

The alarm on Will's phone chimed, waking him instantly. He checked that it was indeed one in the morning, which would likely be early evening in Chicago. He sat up and his heart rate accelerated, but not quite so strongly as before. He dutifully picked up the water bottle on the nightstand and drank. He focused briefly on the connection with Whispers and was able to get a sense of intense frustration, anger, and an undercurrent of worry. Will withdrew, satisfied for the moment that Whispers was still locked down in Chicago.

A quick visit to the bathroom later, he sat on the bed and picked up the travel phone. Riley stirred at the motion. "Will?"

"I'm here. Just calling my dad, letting him know I'm alive."

"I should try and call my dad tomorrow."

He nodded and brought up the short list of contacts in the travel phone, selecting his father's number.

The phone rang several times. If he knew his dad, he would spend the next several seconds debating whether to answer the unfamiliar number before finally picking up because the one time he didn't it would be incredibly important.

"Hello?"

"Dad, it's me."

"Will! Where are you?"

"I don't know. I just—"

"What the hell do you mean you don't know? You can't say something like that! There's this asshole of a doctor trying to convince me that you're sick and have to have a brain operation. Don't you dare tell me he might be right!"

"He's not right, Dad. But I really don't know where I am. I've been unconscious for the last several days while someone got me away from that asshole doctor."

"Willie…"

Will imagined his father running his free hand down his face as he tried to sort out his thoughts.

"I can't talk much longer right now. I just wanted to let you know that I'm alive, I'm safe for the moment, and I have friends trying to help me through this."

"Wait, Will, wait. What does this all have to do with Sarah Patrell?"

And there it was. The case that turned his dad's pleasure in a few beers into alcoholism. The case that took his sharp edge and dulled it enough for his dad to make the mistakes he did and get shot on what should have been a routine drug bust.

"You were telling me the truth back then, weren't you? You really were seeing her?"

"Yeah, Dad. And one night I followed her to an abandoned house and she showed me what was happening to her. That asshole doctor was operating on her brain – I saw it all. I saw her die. The doctor realized I was there and chased after me. Nearly caught me. And even though she was dead, I'd still see Sarah for months after." Will's voice began to shake and he felt Riley's arm creep around him.

"Christ, Will. I…I'm sorry. But it seemed so impossible to believe."

"And so does this, I know. Can you trust me now?"

"Can you stay in touch?"

"I'll do the best I can." Will thought rapidly. "If something happens and I can't call, if you hear from a girl called Riley or another girl called Nomi, you can trust them."

A spark of his dad's humor flared. "Really, Will? One woman not enough for you now?"

"It's hard to explain, but it's not what you're thinking. I gotta go, Dad. I'll try and call again soon."

"Can I call this number?"

"Maybe, I'll have to check with Nomi. If we get traced through this phone we'll have to ditch it and start again."

"God, Will. Please be careful. I want you home again."

"I want to be home, Dad. I love you."

"I love you, too."

Will ended the call and wiped his eyes. Riley slid closer and embraced him.

\%\%\%\%\

The rattle of keys in the door did not startle Sun, as she had heard the guard's footsteps in advance. She waited for the woman to open the door and looked up.

"You have a visitor," the woman stated. Sun rose and followed her out.

She stepped into the conference room and her eyes widened at the sight of her lawyer. As he had done the last time, he stood and held her chair out for her respectfully before sitting in his own. The guard did not bark at him, but left, neglecting to close the door fully.

The lawyer sat and pulled a pair of files from his briefcase. ""I apologize for not coming sooner, but things have been moving in very unpredictable directions since I last came." He opened the first file. "The auditors found new fraudulent activity on the accounts they had been tracking, thinly disguised behind a new false identity. They are demanding that the investigation be reopened and that you be questioned again. They are looking at a few possibilities. If you were working alone, how are you managing to continue the fraud while in prison? If you were working with a partner that you shielded, who is it?"

He paused, making Sun look up from the file to meet his eyes. "And if, as they are beginning to suspect, you confessed to crimes that you did not commit, who are you protecting?"

Sun kept her face impassive, but clasped her hands together under the table. She could feel many of the others as they mentally lent their support to her. She could feel Capheus' hands on her shoulders.

 _Your mother would never expect you to go this far. She had no idea what your brother was capable of. Promises do have limits._

Sun took a deep breath. "I confessed in the hope that my father could salvage the company. And because I promised my mother before she died that I would always look out for my brother. But he is the one who was embezzling the funds. And I believe he killed our father and staged his suicide because Father was going to admit it."

The lawyer nodded. "The police are investigating your father's death. They were made aware of your father's plans and your brother's visit here. His own alibi is solid, but they are tracing all possibilities of a hired assassin."

Sun bowed her head, suppressing the tears that welled up. "He did say, the night the three of us agreed to this, that he had not acted alone."

"We will appear in court tomorrow, where I believe we can arrange for you to be released. They may choose to limit you to the city, but you'll be away from here."

\%\%\%\%\

Nomi looked around Will's room. He, Riley, and Sun were sitting in a row on his bed. Capheus and Lito leaned against the chest of drawers. Kala stood in front of the wardrobe, arms crossed tightly. She had been very quiet since her argument with Wolfgang, who had left for Berlin that morning.

She yawned. It was too damn early for her. Sun was leaning against Riley, also looking sleepy.

Will began, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was so stupid and got us into this mess."

Nomi shook her head. "You weren't stupid, Will. You rushed in, yeah, but you weren't stupid. It's not your fault that Whispers was in exactly the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But now everyone's at risk because of me."

"We were all at risk anyway. If you hadn't gone after Riley, she'd be in your place. But we have time to try and find a solution," Capheus argued.

Will rubbed his hands over his face. "Is everyone okay for now? Any sign of other BPO people coming?"

Nomi shook her head. "Everything's quiet in San Francisco for the moment. But Amanita and I were wondering if we should coordinate with your partner, Diego. Share information, since he seems to be on board with weird shit happening."

Will nodded. "I'm going to call him in a couple of hours. I'll tell him to expect you."

"There's nothing happening here as far as us," Lito offered. "I'm trying to untangle some personal issues, but that is not related."

"You should be safe longer than the rest of us," Nomi observed. "You're a famous movie star. They can't make you just disappear."

"But they could injure him, force him into a hospital. That's what Yrsa said, that we have to be extremely careful not to put ourselves into a hospital situation. That's how they can capture us." Riley was trembling, thinking of the sudden and uncontrollable surge of memories that had caused her to collapse at her father's performance.

Will put an arm around her, feeling retroactive panic of his own. "That's true. Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't woken up fast after the car accident? I was able to charge out of there on my own, but if they'd been ready sooner, I could have ended up in Nomi's situation, with a doctor signing bogus orders to keep me there."

Nomi shuddered, remembering. Lito was the closest to her and he reached over to rub her shoulder in support.

Sun spoke up. "Things are beginning to move for me. My lawyer thinks I may be out of prison in a few days."

"That's good," Capheus offered. The others all made sounds of agreement while Nomi smiled in triumph. He continued, "I expect I will be flying to India in a day or two. Kabaka is sponsoring treatment for my mother that may help her."

Riley brightened. "Will you be able to meet Kala?"

Kala jerked at the sound of her name, startled to see the others smiling at her. "What is it?"

Capheus repeated, "I will be in Mumbai by the end of the week. I would like to visit with you in person, if we can find a way. Perhaps I can go sightseeing, visit your temple."

"That would be lovely," she replied automatically.

The meeting went on for a short while longer, as Riley, Will, and Nomi shared as much as they could about BPO. As the others left, Kala hung back. She gave Riley a significant glance and Riley took the hint.

She stood and kissed Will on the cheek. "I'm going to go upstairs, take a shower. I'll fix us some soup after that."

Will nodded, then realized that Kala was still there.

\%\%\%\%\

"What is it? Are you having any more trouble with those protestors?"

Kala shook her head.

"Your fiancé?"

"No, although I am almost certainly going to have to lie to him deliberately very soon. No, I wanted to know... You know how we are able to interact with one another? Pass physical objects to the other?"

"Yeah?"

"Does it happen with your interactions with the others? With the doctor? Whispers?"

Will paused. "We can physically touch one another. I don't know about passing things one to the other."

"If you get the chance to experiment safely with Angelica's friend, can you try?"

"Sure. Why?"

"I have an idea. But I shouldn't say anything more until I know it's possible."

Will reached out and touched her arm. He looked into her eyes…larger and darker than Riley's, the innocence in them still there, lurking behind her worry. He remembered that first meeting with Riley, when that innocence and joy had shone in her face as well.

"Be careful, please?"

"I will."

\%\%\%\%\

Back in her room, Kala grabbed her phone and sent a text. She quickly changed from her work outfit to jeans and a gauzy blouse. She slipped on sandals and grabbed her purse, sneaking down the back staircase of the house and out into the early evening before anyone in her family could see her.

She took a cab to the hospital and found Rajan outside waiting. He paid her fare before she could protest and helped her out of the car.

"Even though we're almost married, I was surprised when you asked to meet alone."

"How is your father?"

"He is steady. Certainly no worse."

"Should I go in and see your mother?"

He shook his head. "No need right now. I finally convinced her to go home and get some sleep. She'll be back in the morning." He put his hands on her shoulders. "Now, what is it that you needed?"

"The conference in America in two weeks, the one you were planning on attending with your father?"

"Yes, since you were kind enough to agree that our honeymoon trip could wait until September."

"Are you still going, now that your father is stable?"

"I had not decided. I was going to talk to the doctors, to Mother, and then to you."

"I would like to go with you."

"To New York? Why?"

"I have something that I must do."

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Note:** A bit short, but work has been insane and I'm just going to post what I've got and hope I can get a bit of spare time to work on the next chapter soon. Thank you to everyone who has read/favorited/followed/reviewed!

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as "avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would still like a way to get story updates.

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"I'm tired of waiting on Joaquín. Let's go to the press today."

Hernando looked up from his book. He closed it, keeping one finger to hold his place, and pushed his glasses up with his free hand. "Are you sure?"

Lito nodded as he continued to pace around. "My agent suggested going to Cristina first. He said she will be more sympathetic to the situation and if she gets the exclusive she'll allow us input into how the story is presented."

Hernando leaned back. "If you feel it's for the best, I will support you."

"You're sure this will not cause you trouble?"

Hernando shrugged. "They've known for ages at the university that I'm gay. The trouble will come from me, a librarian, being involved with someone as frivolous as an actor, or from being swamped with requests for your autograph."

Lito smiled at that. "There's always Daniela's suggestion of a restaurant."

Hernando laid the book to the side and got up, coming forward and steering Lito until he was pinned to the kitchen island. He raised his hands to Lito's face and leaned in, kissing him soundly.

"Let's hold off on that until we know your next film will make as much money as the last one."

\%\%\%\%\

Wolfgang walked down the hall of the hospital. The doctor stopped him. "Mr. Conan is recovering very nicely. He's breathing on his own, fully responsive. He's even flirting with some of the nurses when he isn't throwing massive profanity in your direction for disappearing on him."

Wolfgang smiled at that and handed the doctor a thick envelope. "Well, I'm back. I've got a place where he can rest and recover. Can he be moved safely? Say, the day after tomorrow?"

The doctor hefted the envelope, which was most assuredly heavy enough to buy his cooperation. "Yes, I think so if you take it slowly and carefully. By this point infection is unlikely. The key is keeping him quiet and letting his body finish recovering. He's in room twenty-six."

Wolfgang nodded and continued down the hall until he found the right room. He paused in the doorway and grinned. Felix was propped up in bed, impatiently flipping through the channels on a television.

"Boring. Boring. Really boring. Complete shit. Why is there nothing good to watch?" Felix dropped the remote and sank back into the pillows. He saw the person standing at his door and looked over and jerked upright.

"Where the fuck have you been?"

Wolfgang laughed.

\%\%\%\%\

Whispers waited until well past midnight before concentrating his awareness into a full assault. In his own cell, he was unlikely to be bothered by the late shift guards if Will managed to cross to him and he appeared to talk to himself. He would catch Will in the early morning for Icelandic and London time, perhaps on the edge of his dreams when he would be less in control of himself.

He situated himself on the hard bed, closing his eyes and giving a hard mental push.

\%\%\%\%\

Will looked up from a simple plate of eggs, ham, and toast. "I was wondering when you'd show up again."

Whispers looked around the room, showing his frustration to hide his observations. Judging from the sunlight in the windows, they were at least one hour further east than he had thought, possibly as many as three. He noticed the sleek tablet and a pile of assorted tech on the chest of drawers and frowned. That looked like the handiwork of Ms. Marks, but how would she have gotten it delivered from San Francisco so quickly? Perhaps she arranged for Ms. Gunnarsdottir to pick it up along the way from Iceland to wherever this was.

He let his anger mount that Metzger had failed to complete the procedure on her when he had the chance. Her skills might make the difference in keeping her cluster out of his reach, and she had escaped San Francisco to the other side of the globe.

Will put his plate aside, palming the knife from his meal, and stood.

\%\%\%\%\

Whispers opened his eyes to see Will towering over him and sat up sharply. "What did you expect to see, Will? I'm still here."

Will nodded. Without speaking, the young man leaned in and down, expertly pinning him against the wall with one forearm and bringing up the other hand. Whispers felt the thin cold edge of something under his jawline. Panic bubbled up, especially seeing the cold and analytical expression in his eyes.

"You can't kill me."

The pressure increased and he felt the thing, the knife, break the skin. It took every bit of control he had not to stutter, not to let his fear get the better of him.

"If you kill me, it's going to look like I died in custody. Your department, your partner, they'll all be in huge trouble."

Will stepped back, putting his weapon in a pocket so quickly that Whispers couldn't see exactly what it had been. "It would almost be worth it. You deserve to die for all the things you've done to a whole lot of innocent people. And you wouldn't be able to keep chasing us. But that wouldn't give Sarah's parents the closure they need. They're good people, they ought to know exactly what happened to their daughter."

At that, Will turned, and left. Whipsers frowned as he felt the young man disrupt the connection between them, leaving him alone in the jail cell.

Whispers' worry shot higher. Angelica had been the only sensate who had been able to jar his grip loose, until now.

\%\%\%\%\

Will sat down on the bed, carefully feeling in his mind the sudden wall he had been able to place between himself and Whispers. It had been so tempting to use the knife, to free himself from Whisper's invasion and remove the danger to the other seven. But just as quickly his common sense had taken over, reminding him of his duty to see justice done, of the chaos such an act would create, and he had felt the protection in his mind rise and push Whispers out. He didn't think he would be able to keep it up forever, but for a few minutes he could be completely isolated from outside cluster connections.

He thought for a few minutes, resolutely refusing to use the world clock on the iPad. He calculated that Kala was three or four hours ahead of him, then looked for her presence. He arrived to find her at a lab station, carefully measuring one liquid into another. He waited until she was done, admiring the professional appearance she had in her lab coat and safety goggles.

"Hi there. Got some news for you."

\%\%\%\%\

Kala didn't react immediately, but set her vials aside and removed her goggles. "I'll be right back. I need some water." Her colleague nodded and she set off to an exit.

Will followed as she went down the hall to an alcove with a water cooler and filled a cup. "No need to talk, just listen. I got a chance when Whispers decided to drop in for a visit. I had a dinner knife with me and pushed through to him. I was able to nick his skin with it. So it looks like the interaction you wanted between different clusters is possible."

\%\%\%\%\

Kala nodded and sipped, pacing around his room. "That is promising. But it was dangerous for you. I said to try with the other one."

"Jonas?"

"Yes, Jonas."

Will shrugged. "We got the information, and Whispers is probably afraid and confused enough not to connect the dots."

"Why? What happened?"

Will looked down, feeling rather ashamed after the fact, and Kala's attention sharpened.

"I almost lost my temper. I had him pinned to the wall and put the knife to his neck. I could have killed him, ended the threat right then. But I held off."

Kala reached out and laid one hand on his cheek. "That is good. Killing him would probably bring all the resources of BPO down upon us. And I know you're not a killer, Will. We've all been inside one another's heads now. You want justice, proper justice."

Will nodded, leaning into her touch. "Thanks."

\%\%\%\%\

Amanita emerged from the bathroom in her robe, squeezing her wet braided extensions with an old T-shirt. She glanced over at Nomi, who was jumping between watching Capheus' flight status and the mounting press coverage in Chicago on the break in the Sarah Patrell case. She took the chair next to Nomi and let her lover take the shirt and continue drying the braids. It was a ritual every two weeks that they both enjoyed. Amanita leaned back and relaxed into her ministrations.

Suddenly she broke the silence. "I've thought about it. I need to take my extensions out, maybe cut my hair shorter. That'll make me more like my driver's license photo that Bug has and be easier to take care of."

Nomi fell silent, her hands frozen in place around the braids briefly before falling away. Amanita turned around and was surprised to see Nomi's face white as chalk. "You don't like the idea."

"It's…your hair…it's glorious, Neets. It's part of what makes you so beautiful!"

Amanita looked down for a few seconds, and then looked her full in the face. "Nomi, what if I got cancer and had to go through chemo? All the hair falls out. Poof! Would you think I was any less beautiful then? Would you decide I was too ugly to love?"

"What? NO!" Nomi felt as if she had been slapped.

"Well, then, right now there's a cancer in our lives named BPO. And while we're fighting to cure ourselves of it, we might lose a few things temporarily. Our home. Our jobs. Our freedom to just live. But we're only going to get those back by fighting for them. And if that means I take these extensions out for a while so I can blend in, then I'll do it."

Nomi plunged forward and threw her arms around Amanita. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry you got pulled into this…" She burst into tears.

Amanita returned the embrace and held her tightly. "I would go through hell for you. And I know you'd do the same for me. We will get through this."

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Note:** No, I'm not dead or in the throes of some awful life event. Just overwhelmed by a difficult job. I beg your continued patience – I will finish this story but updates will be unpredictable. Thank you to everyone who has favorited/followed/reviewed/recommended this story.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as " avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would like story updates there.

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Capheus looked out of the airplane window, admiring the fluffy white clouds. It was just a short time ago that he had visited Riley on her way home, experiencing flight for the first time. And now he was the one on an actual airplane, over actual clouds.

Kabaka had hired a private jet for the journey. Capheus glanced around, noting that by now everyone else had lost interest in the flight itself. His mother and Amondi had both fallen asleep. Kabaka was conversing with the private nurse accompanying them and the men of the security contingent were all either napping or fixated on a phone or tablet.

Riley smiled from the seat across from his. "Does it feel any different being the one actually on the plane?"

Capheus smiled and nodded, not wanting to draw attention by having a conversation with no one. Riley glanced out the window and back to him. "Can you do something for me? If you manage to meet Kala in person, you should try and do so privately. Something…odd seems to happen when we touch one another, actual skin-to-skin contact. It's happened between Will and me and Wolfgang and me so far."

Capheus tried to look inquiringly at her. She went on.

"It's like a sudden, very intense rush of memories, but you experience the memories of the other person, almost as if you relive their life in a few seconds. It's disorienting."

Capheus nodded once more, concentrating as Riley shared her memory of the experience. Definitely better to try the experiment away from any observers.

He jumped slightly as a hand took his. Shiro smiled from her seat next to him. "What has you looking so thoughtful, my zebra?"

He squeezed her hand, aware of Riley's wistful expression. "Just thinking of all the good things that could happen."

\%\%\%\%\

Whispers did everything possible. He followed all the bits of advice from Cox about how to dress, how to look subdued but not contrite, how to pitch his voice as he made his statement.

They still assigned five million dollars in bail, confiscated his passport, and restricted him to the city limits.

He looked around at the bland décor of the extended-stay hotel assigned to him by the court. Cox had sent a BPO gopher to collect his belongings from the compound and was fussing with the binder with descriptions of the local restaurants and sights.

"I'm sorry we couldn't convince them to let you stay where you wanted. But with such a high-profile case, the judge wasn't going to take any chances."

"I've stayed in worse," Whispers growled. "Just make sure we can get the case dismissed. Get hold of Stiles. He's the most competent of our connections at the federal level here."

Cox nodded. "We've got it under control."

Whispers turned away to look at the uninspiring view of a strip mall in late July heat lest his expression betray him. He had caught the younger man's impatience, not understanding the urgency of the situation. Cox was willing to let the situation play out in court, which would take too long and prevent him from moving freely. Cox's attitude was unacceptable.

"Get out and get Stiles."

\%\%\%\%\

Amanita watched from the kitchen, sipping her coffee, as Nomi methodically went through a set of checks created to keep tabs on everyone in the cluster and everyone they wanted to protect or needed to keep an eye on. It seemed that every day added someone new to the mix, making the process longer. Finally, her partner sat back and pushed her glasses up, scrubbing tired eyes.

"Everything all right?"

"Nothing new to report. Which is a problem since nothing has changed for Sun. She's still in solitary confinement. I wish I could hurry up her lawyers and get her out of there."

Amanita came up behind Nomi and leaned down to hug her. "It'll be okay. She'll be out soon."

Nomi reached up to return the embrace. "I know. But knowing that BPO has a major presence in Seoul and right now she's pinned down…it's freaking me out. She's a sitting duck if anyone discovers the connection to the cluster."

They stayed together for a few moments, drawing comfort from each other's presence.

A loud _rat-a-tat-tat_ on the door made them both jump. Amanita palmed a steak knife and went to the door. "Who is it?"

"It's me, Angels."

\%\%\%\%\

As the car pulled into the garage of the multi-story flat, Felix looked around the upscale neighborhood as twilight gave way to night. He had aspired to something like this once, before the lure of beating Steiner to a major heist took hold. He'd gotten shot for his daring, but now Steiner was the one dead, along with Sergei and many of his entourage. Wolfgang had told him everything that had happened after Steiner's attack, including the gang-war theory the police were currently following and how his aunt had offered this hideaway in Prague.

Wolfgang came around to help him out of the car and lead him to the stairs. "Leave everything, I'll get it later. Right now you need to be back in bed or at least on a couch."

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Felix tried to hide how tightly he was gripping the rail and how shallowly he was breathing.

"Not so fine. You took a gunshot to the chest, you bastard. You're lucky to be alive."

Felix was about to respond when the door at the top of the stairs opened and a beautiful girl looked down. Wolfgang said something he didn't catch and she replied in a liquid babble with sounds and hints that ought to be German but weren't. "Ah, you must be an angel speaking the unknown language of God. That's not fair, since I was just assured that I'm not dead."

Wolfgang looked between the two of them and laughed, answering the girl in the same language before switching suddenly to English. "Let's try this."

The girl smiled and replied in an enchanting accent, "Perfect. I've got everything ready for you. The bedroom's clean and dusted, the sheets are fresh." As they got to the top of the stairs, she held out a hand. "I'm Riley."

He took the hand and bent to kiss it. "Felix at your service, lovely Riley."

Wolfgang tugged from his other side. "Come on, bed now. Flirt later."

"That's not usually how it goes, you know."

Riley giggled at that and Felix felt a rush of pleasure. As they steered him into the sitting room his eyes lit up at the extra-long couch, chairs, and wide-screen television. "Here. Let me sit here." They got him settled, lying on the couch and propped with pillows As Riley was about to move to the kitchen to get him something to drink, he spoke. "No, sit, please."

She did so, looking to Wolfgang with a questioning expression. He shrugged and turned back toward the stairs.

"No, you sit too, Wolfie. I've been a very patient man and it's time for you to tell me what's going on."

"I told you—"

"You told me about Steiner and your uncle. You told me what happened to our diamonds. You haven't told me how you're suddenly fluent in four languages and counting, why you've been spacing out for weeks now since your grandfather's funeral. Something has been happening and you haven't been telling me. I'm not waiting another fucking minute. What is going on?"

Wolfgang hesitated, and the girl—Riley—looked at him with sympathy. She spoke to him, "I think we should tell him. It gets too difficult to hide it the longer we wait and—"

"Wait, wait," Felix broke in. "That's German. You're speaking German. Why didn't you before?"

She looked at him, completely puzzled. " _Hvað?_ "

" _Was?_ "

"Hold on, hold on." Wolfgang threw up his hands. "Felix, you heard her speaking her own language the first time, but just now you heard German?"

Felix huffed in impatience. "Yes!"

Wolfgang turned to Riley and focused solely on her. He spoke and Felix heard the same babble from before.

"What language was that?"

Wolfgang looked back to him. "Riley's from Iceland. I'm going to guess that's the language you just heard. She can also speak English."

"All right."

Wolfgang nodded to her. "You try."

She faced Wolfgang, speaking only to him. "So you think that we speak in the language of our intended audience? If I only speak to you without thinking, I communicate in German? And speaking to Felix is like speaking to anyone outside of our group, where I must use English because we don't know each other's language?"

Wolfgang looked over at Felix, and back to Riley. "I think that's what's happening." That was in English. "So, we need to pay attention and try to speak in English among the three of us. Felix, if we forget and slip back into Icelandic, tell us."

"All right. Now explain the language you were speaking in the club."

"The club?" Wolfgang thought back, trying to remember.

"Yeah, you were in the loo and you acted like you were looking for someone."

"Oh, that was…someone else. Someone from India."

"A girl from India."

"And how do you know it was a girl?"

"Because of that goofy look on your face when you said you wanted to go there!"

"Boys!" Riley jumped in. They both looked at her, startled.

Felix grinned in disbelief. "Er, 'boys'?" He raised both hands to show air quotes.

She shrugged. "You were acting like boys. Try acting like men and I might call you men. Now, Wolfgang, we need to start from the beginning…"

\%\%\%\%\

Daniela shot to her feet as Lito and Hernando emerged from Cristina's office. "Well?"

Lito smiled. "She said she'd be happy to arrange something for her show on Friday, capture the news cycle going into the weekend. That gives me time. My agent can set up a meeting with the movie production staff first."

"And she'll keep it to herself until then?"

"Dani, you know her. Of course she will. Anything for an exclusive like this!"

She sighed in relief and hugged him, then moved to Hernando and hugged him as well. "I think you're doing the right thing. It may affect your career for a few months, but you're too good an actor. You'll get back to where you want to be."

The three of them went to the elevators and Dani punched the call button. They waited for several minutes, watching the numbers above the doors stay in the 20s. Finally Hernando tilted his head toward the stairwell doors. "Come on, it's only five floors and it's down."

They started down the stairs and had gotten to the second floor when they heard doors slam open above and below them. Bodies came at them from either side. Daniela screamed as one of them grabbed her and began dragging her back up the stairs. The others began raining blows on Lito and Hernando.

\%\%\%\%\

Wolfgang shot up from his chair, locking eyes with Riley. "Lito! He's being attacked—"

\%\%\%\%\

Will jerked up from his bed, dropping his tablet.

\%\%\%\%\

Lito could feel the presence of the others. Wolfgang was there, laying precise blows as best he could against the two men attacking him. As one fell over the railing with wails of pain and the snap of bones breaking as he hit the railings below…

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Will sensed another attacker leaving Hernando and coming after him. As he spun and sent the first attacker into the second, the third came, abandoning a dazed Hernando. Now there were three of them and one of him. He was vaguely aware of a flashing light from above, and voices as Dani's screams had drawn attention.

 _Dani!_

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Sun woke in her cell as the vision of multiple men coming after her, her friends captured, shifted from dream to awareness.

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And Lito let his crying Korean woman take over.

\%\%\%\%\

Sun assessed the cramped stairwell in an instant and vaulted over one of the attackers to the landing below. With the even ground to work from and the men plunging down toward her, it was short work to help gravity along. As they fell, she noted the presence of…

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Wolfgang, who had the arm strength and viciousness to slam the heads of two of the off-balance assailants together.

\%\%\%\%\

She tossed the third man into the door, pairing a precise strike to the face with the doorknob slamming into his kidney from behind. He slid to the floor, temporarily unable to move. One quick breath now that the immediate threat was neutralized…

\%\%\%\%\

Will ran up to Hernando, who was slowly moving to his feet. ""I'm fine, go! Go after Dani!"

\%\%\%\%\

Lito ran up the stairs to where the last attacker was struggling with Daniela. She drove one of her heels into his foot and he howled with pain, releasing her into Lito's arms.

\%\%\%\%\

Will immediately moved her behind him.

\%\%\%\%\

Wolfgang assessed the man as he recovered, guessing that he would not run, but draw the gun currently in a holster inside his jacket.

\%\%\%\%\

Sun surged forward and seized the man's wrist, ducking under his arm to twist it around and force him off balance. Dimly she heard the woman shout to whoever was above them.

\%\%\%\%\

Daniela grabbed a railing to steady herself, as one of her shoes now sported a broken heel. Realizing that the flash above was someone taking pictures of the fight, she yelled, "You idiot! Get the police!"

She heard more voices from above and looked around. Hernando was dragging himself up, leaning heavily on the railing and trying to see without his glasses. One eye was swelling rapidly.

\%\%\%\%\

Sun forced the man to bend, keeping his arm locked and the pressure on one nerve point so the attacker would be in too much pain to go for the gun.

\%\%\%\%\

Wolfgang held Sun's position and shouted, "There's a gun in his jacket! Get it!"

\%\%\%\%\

Daniela reached hesitantly and jumped back when the man flailed with his free arm. Lito leaned into his hold on the man and growled at her, "Do it! He's not going anywhere!"

She looked at the familiar face, with frigid eyes and a cold expression she had never seen in him before. Drawing a deep breath, she moved in and snagged the gun. Once she was out of reach, Lito forced the man to the floor and pinned him.

"Hold onto it, but don't get near the trigger." Daniela blinked at the sudden change in his voice, calm and authoritative. His expression was now watchful of her, but also reassuring.

Hernando made it to the landing just as a man and a woman arrived from the upper floors. The man had his phone out and was filming. "That was amazing! Just like El Caído!"

"Stop taking pictures and call the police! We were attacked by these men!" Lito snapped, and **that** sounded like the Lito she knew.

The woman responded, "I called them! They're coming!"

Daniela shrank back next to Hernando, who was squinting in his lover's direction and frowning.

\%\%\%\%\

Wolfgang fell back into his chair and he and Riley traded looks full of relief. They broke into hesitant laughter and clasped hands, then a voice interrupted them.

"What the fuck just happened?

Wolfgang looked over at his best friend. "That, Felix, was a demonstration."

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** If you recognize the characters, they aren't mine. Just playing in the sandbox so graciously provided by JMS and the Wachowskis.

 **Note:** No, I'm not dead or in the throes of some awful life event. Just overwhelmed by a difficult job. I beg your continued patience – I will finish this story but updates will be unpredictable. Thank you to everyone who has favorited/followed/reviewed/recommended this story.

 **Reminder:** I'm also on Twitter as " avidbeader" if you're reading here as a guest and would like story updates there.

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"Demonstration? What demonstration? You yelled about someone being attacked, jumped up, and just stood there staring and twitching! What did that fucking demonstrate?" Felix glared at Wolfgang, who was still holding Riley's hands.

"I wasn't…I wasn't here. I was somewhere else, helping a…friend. He got jumped by five bastards, him and his partner and their friend."

"And? How am I fucking supposed to know that?"

"Wait, wait," Riley interrupted. "We need to do this logically. In a way we can prove. Let's start with this. Wolfgang, you go away. Upstairs, where you can't hear us."

Wolfgang immediately caught on and nodded. "That should work."

Riley watched him go. She waited until she heard a door close and turned to Felix, who still looked angry. "All right. Ask me things about yourselves. Anything big or small that I shouldn't know but that Wolfgang would."

"What? Telepathy? Wolfgang's spacing out because he's thinking at other people?"

"Sort of. Now ask." Riley could feel Wolfgang's presence as he paced around them.

"Where did we meet?"

 _At school, in detention. I'd got into a fight._

"You met at school, in detention. He was there for fighting."

"What's our favorite movie?"

Wolfgang almost snorted. _'Conan the Barbarian'. Tell him to ask harder ones._

" _Conan the Barbarian_ and ask harder ones."

"Fine. On our last…job, he insisted on taking a break and turning on the television. What were we watching?"

 _Euro Talent Spotlight. He said the contestant looked like a camel and she wouldn't win._

"Euro Talent Spotlight. And you were rude about one of the contestants! A camel? Really?"

Wolfgang broke into a grin as Felix flinched from Riley's tone. "Okay. I think I get it."

"Now, tell me something that Wolfgang couldn't possibly know. And I'll tell you something about myself that he shouldn't know. Then he'll come back down and answer the questions."

 _Wait, I have a better idea. Ask him if he has his lucky lock._

Riley frowned. "Do you have your lucky lock?"

Felix's eyebrows shot up at that. "Yeah, but Wolfgang is the only one who can open it." He pulled out a combination lock attached to a pair of keys and handed it to her.

"Why?" She began turning the dial.

"Don't know. Just some silly teenage shit. I carry it but he knows the combination. Plus it's really sensitive – even if you know the numbers you have to—"

Riley tossed the open lock at him with an impish grin.

\%\%\%\%\

Lito was exhausted. Going through a police interrogation in real life was somehow longer and more draining than filming one with multiple takes to get the lines right, the camera angles right. The same questions asked, over and over. He stuck to what had happened other than letting the officers think that he had done all the fighting and pointing them toward Joaquín Flores as the one who had sent them. And when they asked, he gave autographs without protest.

Finally they were done and he was allowed to meet Hernando and Daniela in the main lobby of the building. As he approached, Daniela was on her phone, but stood up and kissed his cheek.

"Hernando will be back in a minute. He's bringing us coffee from Allende down the street."

Lito nodded and pulled out his own phone, which he had silenced during the interviews with the police. As he thumbed it on, his eyes widened at a slew of texts from both his agent and Cristina.

WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED? ARE YOU ALL RIGHT?

WHAT'S GOING ON? THEY'RE SAYING YOU WERE JUMPED BY A GANG IN MY BUILDING?

I HAVE CRISTINA BLOWING UP MY PHONE TRYING TO GET YOU. WHAT DID YOU DO?

HOW? HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO GIVE ME AN EXCLUSIVE THAT YOU'RE GAY AND THEN FIGHT OFF A DOZEN MEN? WHO IS GOING TO BELIEVE ME IF I TELL THEM YOU'RE GAY?

THE PRODUCERS ARE ALL OVER ME! IS THIS GOING TO TAKE YOU OFF THE SET AGAIN?

YOU'D BETTER GET BACK TO ME AND EXPLAIN YOURSELF NOW!

The last text included a link to a YouTube video. One of the witnesses had uploaded it over two hours ago and it already had over eight thousand hits.

Daniela saw his expression and turned the phone to read the messages. "Oh, no. Cristina's not backing out on you! She knows Wilson Cruz and Ricky Martín! Or Christian Chávez! And nobody would dare say Orlando Cruz can't fight!"

Lito looked up at her in confusion. "Orlando Cruz? Since when do you follow boxing?"

She shrugged. "I get around. Let me handle her. You get in touch with your agent."

\%\%\%\%\

Capheus stretched out on the bed in his hotel room. Kabaka had taken an entire floor of a luxury hotel for them and he had his own room, with a lovely view of the city. He reached for Kala and gently brushed at her with his awareness.

She walked over to the window. "Very nice. This will be beautiful after the sun sets."

"I think I have a way for us to meet. I will tell everyone of this wonderful restaurant I heard being described by a couple of people in the airport."

"Really?" Kala's eyebrows rose in amusement. "You speak Hindustani?"

"No, but there were people speaking English and I know that."

\%\%\%\%\

He looked curiously at her workstation, with its collection of glass beakers and tubes. Kala and her co-workers were busy putting things away for the night. She slowed down and let the others move toward the locker areas where they stored their belongings.

Once she was alone she spoke. "All right. So you tell me when you all are coming and I drop by just in time to help the servers with an unexpected large group?"

"And I excuse myself to the restroom at some point."

"I think that will work. Is tonight too soon?"

"Probably, but I will propose the idea and let you know."

\%\%\%\%\

"How did you do that? Wolfie, you fucking bastard, how did she do that?"

Will jerked at the shout from an unfamiliar voice upstairs. He groped for his earbuds and jammed them in, scrambling to play something on the iPad loudly enough to drown it out.

Riley was there in an instant, leaning over him. "It's okay, I'm working on it!"

\%\%\%\%\

She leaped from her chair, shushing Felix. "Quiet! Don't shout! At least don't shout names or anything about where we are!"

Felix looked at her crossly and tried to sit up, fuming that he couldn't jump up as she did. "Why not?" Wolfgang appeared from the stairs and he asked again, "Why the fuck not?"

"Because of how our connection works…and because we're being hunted."

Felix allowed Riley to guide him back to his pillows, but flung the open lock at Wolfgang, who caught it easily. "Who's hunting you?"

Riley sat again and looked at Wolfgang, who nodded at her. "You tell it. I can help when you want me to."

She drew a deep breath. "There is a group of us. I don't want to give too many details, just in case they catch you, somehow. There's me and Wolfgang and the girl from India. There are more and that's all we're going to say about that. We can speak each other's languages, use each other's skills. If we let ourselves stop concentrating on our own surroundings, we know what the others are doing. We can experience what they see and hear, smell and taste and touch."

Felix looked over at Wolfgang, who just shrugged.

"You really expect me to believe this shit?"

Riley tilted her head at him. "How did I open your lock?"

"Wolfgang told you the combination and how sensitive it is!"

Riley started to protest and realized that Felix was still thinking in terms of telepathy. "All right. What would convince you? If Wolfgang's specialty is opening locks, let's get one you know I haven't seen."

"I don't know how we can do that," Wolfgang interrupted. "I'm the only one who should be going out right now."

Riley scowled, refusing to give up yet. "What about downstairs? There were bicycles – did they have locks? Felix, would you believe us if I went and got one and opened it without Wolfgang in the room?"

"Why is it all about locks?"

Felix's question stopped them both and Wolfgang and Riley looked at one another. Wolfgang looked thoughtful. "He's right. It doesn't have to be locks."

"Well, we can't demonstrate from me. All I can do is spin records."

Felix looked interested at that. "You're a DJ?" She nodded. "That sounds like fun."

"It … it was."

Wolfgang put a hand to her shoulder. "Don't say that. We're going to figure this out."

\%\%\%\%\

Will watched as Riley flung her hands in the air. She started pacing across his room. "Why won't he believe us?"

He stood and intercepted her, putting soothing hands on her shoulders. "It'll be okay. We'll figure it out. You can have Wolfgang do something with computers or martial arts without giving any details about Nomi or Sun, something like that. I would tell him about BPO – there's enough online to show him it's a real place. That might help."

Riley nodded and they leaned into one another for comfort.

\%\%\%\%\

Lito watched the video again, showing him move like flowing water as he methodically took out the attackers. The volume was faint, but he could hear the tones in his voice change as Wolfgang, then Will instructed Daniela. _What the hell do I do now?_

Nomi sat next to him. "Let me see."

\%\%\%\%\

Lito leaned over her shoulder as her fingers began flying across a keyboard. "Okay, the original video is down and that person's ISP has a temporary ban on reloading it. It'll take me a little while, but I'll track down any reposts. Amanita can keep an eye on Instagram and Tumblr for me. Bug, you're monitoring Facebook and Twitter."

"I am?"

"You are. Lito, give me any probable search terms besides your name."

Bug looked at Amanita. "Who's Lito?"

\%\%\%\%\

"Lito. Lito Rodríguez. Tino or El Caído or both."

Daniela looked up from her phone. "What are you doing?"

"If you were trying to find this video, what else would you search?"

She pondered, then gave a few more names of popular characters in his résumé. Lito repeated them.

\%\%\%\%\

Nomi jotted down the names Lito gave her. "Okay, cycle through these search terms. Limit your searches to the most recent option, not over four hours old. Bug, wipe out every instance of the video. And any related pictures. Neets, if you find anything, get one of us and we'll take care of it. If we're lucky it won't take more than an hour."

"Roger." Amanita began typing immediately.

Bug looked from one to the other. "Can somebody tell me what the fuck is going on?"

"I'm saving a friend's ass. Details later."

He huffed, but sat down and began.

\%\%\%\%\

Daniela charged through the receptionist's office before she could do more than yell and barreled through Cristina's door. The reporter was on her mobile, insisting to someone in English that yes, she had seen the video and no, she didn't know why it had suddenly disappeared from YouTube. She disconnected and flung the phone down.

Daniela hesitated for one instant after hearing that the video was down. Cristina looked up at her crossly. "What do you want?" Then she realized just who had come in and switched back to Spanish. "Oh, Miss Velázquez! I'm sorry, it's been such an afternoon—"

"Don't kill your story about Lito. Just because he was able to fight off an attack does NOT mean he lied to you about being gay. Think about Orlando Cruz! Think about—"

"I'm not going to kill the story! But I have to figure out how to approach it now. The video is already gone from YouTube and the photos are disappearing even as I refresh them! Someone is clearly erasing this from the Internet and I don't know who! Lito's agent doesn't have the connections to do something like this and he'd rather have the publicity anyway."

Dani glanced at her phone, confused, and tried refreshing the video on her own phone. She blinked at the takedown notification. "That's…quick."

Both of them jumped as voices rose in the reception area. Cristina stood up as a young man barreled in despite the receptionist trying to grab him and insist he wait.

"What is it, Emilio?"

"My video of Lito Rodríguez! It got taken down and now I can't reload it! It says I have a 24-hour ban on my YouTube account!" He waved his phone at her in frustration, showing the message in the app.

Daniela leaped forward like a gazelle and snatched it from his hand. Emilio wailed but the receptionist was still clinging to his arm and slowed him down. Daniela dodged behind Cristina and quickly jumped to his photo files and deleted the video.

Cristina convinced the receptionist to let Emilio go and steered her back to the door. "Go get yourself a coffee and lock the main door behind you." The receptionist sped out, glad for the excuse to leave.

Daniela moved behind Cristina's desk and tossed the phone at its owner. Emilio looked at his photo files and turned red with anger. "You bitch! You fucking bitch! You deleted it!"

Cristina stepped in. "Emilio, pull yourself together! You shouldn't have been filming that in the first place, you should have been calling the police! They would have taken your phone as evidence anyway. This way you don't have to get another one."

As Cristina continued to try and soothe Emilio. Daniela whipped her own phone out and texted Lito.

CRISTINA STILL DOING STORY. GOT LUCKY AND GOT THE PHONE WITH THE VIDEO LONG ENOUGH TO DELETE IT. ALREADY YANKED FROM YOUTUBE.

\%\%\%\%\

Lito read the text and laughed aloud as Hernando approached, a coffee cup in each hand.

"What's so funny?"

Lito held up the phone, showing Hernando the text. Hernando sat down next to him, still with a coffee in each hand, and looked at his partner with a nearly awestruck expression.

On Lito's other side, Nomi did not bother to hide her smugness.

\%\%\%\%\

Amondi listened in as Capheus suggested a local restaurant described in rapturous tones by a pair of travelers in the airport. She immediately demanded that they go tonight and listed her reasons.

"First, the doctors could tell you to keep me in hospital before the operation and I wouldn't be able to go. I'd have to eat nasty hospital food." As she said that, Capheus winced, realizing that this was the voice of experience speaking.

"Second, if it's as good as they say, we'll want to go back as often as possible. So we should start tonight. And third, if we don't like it we get it over with."

Kabaka laughed and swept his daughter into a hug. "Very well, my light. We'll need to reserve three cars to carry everyone. I'll ask downstairs about calling and warning them we're coming."

\%\%\%\%\

As Kala arrived home from work, her sister pounced on her. "Thank goodness you're home! I need you to do me a huge favor! Papa called and said he needs me to come in and waitress – he got a call about a party of twelve wanting to have dinner at seven and I had plans with Veda and Anjali. Please, can you go?"

Kala made a show of rolling her eyes and protesting. "Really? I've been at work all day. Today was your easy day with only two classes."

"Please? I promise I'll owe you!"

 _Well, that could be very useful if I need her to cover for me._ "All right, but you owe me a serious favor."

"Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"Just let me get changed, all right?"

\%\%\%\%\

Sun followed the guard to the meeting room and smiled slightly as her lawyer rose and bowed to her. "Ms. Bak."

She bowed in return. "It is good to see you. What news do you have?"

"You will be released from solitary and returned to your original cell tonight. Everything will be arranged for you to appear in court tomorrow morning at ten. The judge will be reviewing new evidence and I expect that you will be released immediately. At worst, you will spend tomorrow night here and leave the day after."

"That is excellent news. What has happened?" Sun was reasonably sure she knew, but wanted to know what the lawyers had.

Nomi planted her hands on the table, leaning over them and grinning like the proverbial cat that had ingested a canary.

\%\%\%\%\

Sun leaned over Nomi's shoulder as she pulled up various records showing what she had done. Getting the death of Sun's father re-labeled as suspicious instead of a suicide. Tracking and highlighting new fraudulent activity by Sun's brother or his associates. It all added up to a clear picture that at most, Sun was not alone in the fraud.

\%\%\%\%\

Sun tuned back into what the lawyer was saying.

"…so I think the judge will have no choice but to release you. The police will want to question you again. Please do not speak to them without me."

"Of course. Thank you."

\%\%\%\%\

Kala arrived ten minutes before seven to find her father frantic. "Kala! It's lovely to see you! Please, have you see Daya?"

Kala put on an air of impatience. "Yes, and she begged me to come help you out. She had plans she didn't want to break."

Sanyam threw his hands in the air. "That girl! No loyalty to the family!" He reached under the counter and pulled a folded apron from the pile. "Well, I will not turn down your help. We got a reservation for a dozen people and they should—" He looked up sharply and gasped. "They're here! Niraj, Basu, quickly! Set the tables together!"

As her father swept forward to welcome the party, Kala began tying her apron. Her eyes sought out Capheus, who was hanging back in the group, and he smiled back at her. She assembled a tray of glasses and brought them over, carefully setting them at each place. Niraj, one of the younger waiters who had his eye on her sister, followed with the pitcher of iced water and leaned in. "So, where's Daya tonight? I have a major test to swot for – I would have traded shifts if I'd known she wasn't going to be here."

"She had plans," Kala replied in a severe tone, hoping to cut off any more conversation. She noticed Capheus leaning in to speak to the oldest woman in the party and move toward the back of the restaurant. He paused and looked around, and Basu pointed him down the correct hall.

Kala finished setting out the glasses and returned the tray to the bar. She caught her father's eye as he distributed silverware and tilted her head toward the back. He nodded but flapped one hand to signal that she should not dawdle. She went down the hall, just past the doors to the restrooms, and slipped into the storage room that held linens and extra chairs. Keeping the door cracked, she watched for Capheus.

\%\%\%\%\

Capheus emerged from the restroom and started back up the hall toward the dining area. As he passed a door, it opened a crack and Kala hissed, "In here!"

He slipped in and closed the door behind him. As he turned, ready to warn Kala about the experience that Riley and Wolfgang had undergone, she gasped, "It's so good to finally meet in person!" and jumped forward, her arms going around his neck.

\%\%\%\%\

 _Mother…father…sister…family…_

 _The panic of losing his mother in the crowd was balanced by her gratitude in overhearing her mother defend her._

 _The agony of leaving her sister with the nuns was balanced by his ecstasy at seeing the festival crowd through Ganesh's eyes._

 _The taste of his father's cooking…_

 _The patience as her mother listened to her babble…_

 _The building frustration as his parents encouraged him into the engagement…_

 _The fear as she cared for her mother, fighting to supply her with the necessary medications…_

Kala managed to let go of Capheus as the flood of sensation passed, but her legs wavered. He held her up until she was steady.

"What was that?" She demanded in a frantic whisper.

"That was…what happens when we meet face to face."

\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\%\

 **Author's Note:** Thank you for reading!


End file.
